MLB Player News

Ruiz went 4-for-5 with a home run, three RBI and three runs scored in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.

The young backstop busted out after a sluggish start to the spring, capping his big performance with a two-run blast off Hector Neris in the eighth inning. Ruiz is locked in as the Nationals' starting catcher after being one of the key pieces in last year's Trea Turner trade with the Dodgers, and he's coming off a season in which he slashed .310/.377/.616 with 21 homers in only 72 games between Oklahoma City and Rochester at the Triple-A level.

The Pirates signed Davis to a minor-league contract March 11.

Davis has been competing with Michael Perez for the Pirates' backup catching job behind Roberto Perez. Whether Davis or Michael Perez ultimately emerges as the No. 2 option, neither is likely to play much more than twice per week while Roberto Perez is healthy.

Stallings went 1-for-3 with an RBI in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Mets.

The veteran catcher is hitting a lackluster .235 (4-for-17) this spring, but Stallings' spot at the top of the Marlins' depth chart isn't in jeopardy. The 32-year-old's defense will keep him behind the plate most days, and he did post a career-high eight homers and 53 RBI last year for the Pirates before an offseason trade.

Herrera will be the backup catcher after the Diamondbacks reassigned Juan Graterol to minor-league camp Sunday, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Herrera has been with the organization since 2014 but will be making his first appearance in the majors. He'll back up Carson Kelly, while the Diamondbacks use Daulton Varsho mostly in center field. Herrera is 3-for-16 (.188) this spring and slashed .248/.346/.705 over seven minor-league seasons (393 games).

The Rockies reassigned Perez to minor-league camp Sunday.

Colorado also reassigned fellow backstop Brian Serven to minor-league camp Sunday, signaling that Dom Nunez has made the Rockies' Opening Day roster as the No. 2 catcher behind Elias Diaz. Perez, who most recently saw big-league action with Texas and Atlanta during the 2018 season, is expected to report to Triple-A Albuquerque to begin the 2022 campaign.

Contreras will be on Atlanta's Opening Day roster, barring any late roster additions, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Atlanta is set behind the plate for 2022 with Travis d'Arnaud and Manny Pina, but Contreras has been seeing some action in the outfield and third base, which will help him make the team with two extra roster spots until May 1. The 24-year-old hit .215/.303/.399 with eight home runs and 23 RBI in 185 plate appearances in the majors last season, and he's likely to see sporadic playing time.

D'Arnaud went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Twins.

The veteran catcher took Chris Archer deep in the third inning, giving d'Arnaud his second homer this spring. He's slashing .357/.400/.786 through 15 Grapefruit League plate appearances, and while he likely won't come to that batting average during the regular season, the 33-year-old should be a solid power source after slugging 16 home runs and 60 RBI through 104 games over the last two seasons.

Realmuto has hit .308/.355/.498 with one homer through nine spring games.

Spring stats shouldn't move the needle on a player's value very much, but it's still good to see that Realmuto looks fully ready to go as he heads into his ninth major-league season. His .263 batting average last season represented his lowest mark since 2015, but his .782 OPS and 17 homers were still quite good for a catcher. He also helped his fantasy value with 13 steals, a career high and the highest for any catcher since Russell Martin stole 18 bases in 2008.

Knizner is expected to start at catcher more frequently in 2022, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Knizner's increased role is designed in part to afford 39-year-old Yadier Molina more rest in his last major-league campaign. While the plan is to have Knizner play more, he'll have to hit better than the .174/.281/.236 slash line he compiled in 185 plate appearances last season to maintain the added time. The 27-year-old still shouldn't be expected to play enough to make much impact in fantasy outside of two-catcher formats.

Ruiz is hitting .125 (2-for-16) so far in Grapefruit League action with one double and a 1:2 BB:K.

The contact is nice to see, but it's not a surprise after Ruiz posted a 9.4 percent strikeout rate in 96 big-league plate appearances between the Dodgers and Nationals last season. The 23-year-old is being counted on to seize the top catching job in Washington this season, and a handful of spring at-bats won't jeopardize his spot on the depth chart after he slashed .310/.377/.616 with 21 homers and a 30:33 BB:K across 72 games at Triple-A in 2021.