MLB Player News

Stephenson (head) is out of Sunday's lineup against the Pirates.

He passed initial concussion tests Saturday night after taking a foul ball off his facemask. Considering Stephenson has suffered three concussions in his career, the Reds will tread carefully here, so it's not surprising he is getting at least one day off ahead of Monday's off day. Aramis Garcia is starting behind the dish, batting seventh.

D'Arnaud is not in Sunday's lineup against the Padres.

He is hitting .206 with one home run, 12 strikeouts and one walk in 34 at-bats this month. William Contreras gets the start behind the dish, hitting eighth.

Stephenson left Saturday's game against the Pirates after taking a foul ball off his facemask, but manager David Bell said afterward that Stephenson passed initial concussion tests, Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. "The report (Saturday night) is no concussion," Bell said. "[Stephenson] was examined by the doctors here. We'll have him re-evaluated just to be sure, but that's a real relief in a big way. That's very scary. We caught a break there."

As Goldsmith notes, Stephenson has suffered three concussions in his playing career, including one earlier this season in a collision at home plate with the Padres' Luke Voit. Another one in such a short span could be devastating, so even if Stephenson's follow-up tests are clear as well, the Reds may look to ease his workload behind the plate for a stretch. In light of his concussion history, it's reasonable to think Stephenson could end up replacing Joey Votto as the team's primary first baseman in time.

Smith (pectoral) will bat cleanup and serve as the designated hitter Saturday against the Phillies, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Smith hit the bench Friday due to a minor pectoral issue, with reports at the time indicating that he'd return as the designated hitter Saturday. That's indeed the case, with Austin Barnes set for another start behind the plate, but Smith is reportedly already penciled in as the catcher for the Dodgers' next three games.

Diaz isn't starting Saturday against the Royals, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Diaz has gone 0-for-9 with a run and three strikeouts over his last two games, and he'll be out of the lineup for the second time in the last three games. Dom Nunez will start behind the plate and bat ninth.

Nido isn't starting Saturday against the Mariners.

Nido started in the last three games and went 2-for-9 with an RBI, a walk and two strikeouts. Patrick Mazeika will take over behind the plate and bat ninth Saturday.

Perez is on the bench Saturday against Cincinnati.

Perez began the year in the minors but seems to have leapt over Andrew Knapp into the starting role with Roberto Perez (hamstring) on the injured list. He started five of the last six games prior to Saturday's contest, but it will be Knapp behind the plate this time around.

Narvaez isn't starting Saturday against Miami.

Narvaez has logged multi-hit performances in his last two games, but he'll be out of the lineup for the third time in the last four matchups. Victor Caratini will start behind the plate and bat ninth.

Nola isn't starting Saturday against Atlanta.

Nola went 1-for-4 with a double, a run and a walk in Friday's series opener, but he'll be out of the lineup for the second time in the last three games. Jorge Alfaro will start behind the dish and bat ninth.

Contreras went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a second run scored in Friday's 11-6 loss to the Padres.

The young backstop took Yu Darvish deep in the third inning to open the scoring for Atlanta. Travis d'Arnaud is playing well enough to keep the starting job behind the plate, but Contreras is showing he belongs in the majors on a full-time basis, slugging four homers in five starts since his promotion in late April while batting .375 (6-for-16) with seven RBI. Should d'Arnaud get hurt or slump, Contreras could become a fantasy asset even in shallow formats, and not just a DFS darling.