MLB Player News

Kelly will start at catcher and bat eighth in Wednesday's game against the Phillies.

Kelly has now started in three straight games since returning from the 60-day injured list Monday for his 2023 debut with the Diamondbacks and looks as though he'll operate as Arizona's top catcher ahead of Gabriel Moreno. However, given that Kelly is off to an 0-for-7 start at the plate since being activated, he may have to pick up the pace with the bat to ensure he sticks ahead of Moreno on the depth chart for the balance of the season.

Moreno is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.

After hitting .280 in his first 179 plate appearances of the season while also grading out well defensively, Moreno looked as though he had done enough to retain the Diamondbacks' No. 1 catching job when Carson Kelly was reinstated from the 60-day injured list Monday, but manager Torey Lovullo evidently felt differently. Moreno now finds himself on the bench for the third game in a row and looks like he could wind up serving as Kelly's backup.

Diaz will serve as the Rockies' designated hitter and cleanup batter in Wednesday's game against the Red Sox.

Austin Wynns will handle catching duties while Diaz sticks in the lineup in a non-defensive role. During the first two games of the series against the Red Sox, Diaz went 3-for-9 with four RBI and two extra-base hits to improve his slash line to .296/.352/.461 over 227 plate appearances this season.

Murphy is not in the starting lineup for Game 1 of Wednesday's doubleheader with the Tigers.

Murphy will take a seat for a second straight game in Wednesday's matinee. Travis d'Arnaud will draw another start behind the plate and bat fourth in Game 1 with Detroit.

Contreras is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Giants.

Contreras will effectively get two days to rest up, as the Cardinals are off the schedule Thursday before returning to action Friday versus the Mets. Andrew Knizner will step in behind the dish in place of Contreras, who went 0-for-9 with three walks and two runs while starting at catcher in each of St. Louis' previous three contests.

Bailey went 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBI in Tuesday's 11-3 win over the Cardinals.

He launched a solo shot off Genesis Cabrera in the sixth inning, going back-to-back with Mike Yastrzemski to blow open what had been a 6-2 game. Bailey continues to solidify his hold on the Giants' starting job behind the plate, and since his promotion in mid-May he's slashing .323/.353/.585 through 70 plate appearances with three homers and 16 RBI. His 3:19 BB:K and .419 BABIP suggest there will be regression coming for his batting average, however -- which wouldn't be a shocking development for a 24-year-old who batted .225 in High-A only last year.

Realmuto went 2-for-4 with a triple, a double, a walk, a stolen base, three runs and an RBI in Tuesday's 15-3 win over the Diamondbacks.

Realmuto picked up where he left off after hitting for the cycle Monday, notching a triple and an RBI double in his final two at-bats of the evening. Realmuto now has six hits, six runs and four RBI over his last two games after he was hitless over the prior four games coming into Monday. Tuesday's stolen base brought him up to double-digit steals for a third straight season, and he's now up to a slash line of .260/.311/.474 with six homers, 25 RBI, 26 runs and a 13:54 BB:K over 235 plate appearances.

Diaz went 2-for-5 with a double, a triple and three RBI in Tuesday's 7-6 extra-inning win over the Red Sox.

He got the Rockies on the board in the third inning by rattling a bases-loaded double off the Green Monster. Diaz hasn't homered in 15 games, a stretch in which he's slashing just .186/.238/.288, but he has four extra-base hits (three doubles and a triple) through 10 contests in June with six RBI, and he remains locked into the starting role behind the plate for Colorado.

Smith went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's 5-1 win over the White Sox.

Smith opened the scoring in the first inning, and that was ultimately all the Dodgers needed for the win. The catcher has been a little shaky at the plate lately, going 9-for-38 (.237) over his last 11 games, though he has three homers and seven RBI in that span. For the season, he owns a .290/.393/.521 slash line with 10 long balls, 35 RBI, 32 runs scored and a stolen base over 48 contests. He remains a consistent presence in the heart of the order when he plays.

Sanchez went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Guardians.

Sanchez's first-inning blast was enough to put the Padres ahead for good. The catcher has seen the ball well lately, going 7-for-29 (.241) with four homers and 11 RBI over his last seven contests. He's up to six long balls, 16 RBI, nine runs scored, two doubles and a .245/.281/.623 slash over 16 contests between the Padres and the Mets this season. His solid hitting with San Diego has allowed him to take a starting role over Austin Nola.