MLB Player News

Diaz (head) is starting behind the dish and hitting eighth Thursday against the Nationals.

He missed a couple games after getting hit by a bat on his catcher's mask in Monday's game, but is healthy enough to catch a full game against Washington. In related news, Francisco Cervelli (concussion) was released by the Pirates earlier in the day, so it is officially Diaz and Jacob Stalling's show behind the plate going forward.

Smith went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Wednesday in the Dodgers' 2-1 win over the Blue Jays in 10 innings.

Smith got the scoring started in the fourth inning, when he took Zack Godley deep for his 12th long ball of the season. The rookie has supplied six of those home runs in the last seven games and seems to have already asserted himself as a high-end fantasy catcher despite still maintaining prospect eligibility.

Mejia went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's loss to the Reds.

Mejia drove a ball 380 feet over the wall in right center field for San Diego's only long ball of the game. The 23-year-old continues to wield a hot bat in August and is now slashing .404/.436/.712 with four homers this month. He has started six of the last seven games -- including a stint in left field Tuesday -- and has risen to the fifth spot in the order as the Padres place increasing value on his offensive production.

Campusano and Lancaster's Luis Castro were named co-MVPs of the California League on Wednesday.

Campusano emerged as a top prospect with High-A Lake Elsinore this season, leading the league with a .320 batting average while slugging 13 home runs and racking up 69 RBI in 388 at-bats. The 20-year-old also possesses excellent defensive skills behind the plate. He is likely a few years away from joining the big club.

Contreras (hamstring) did some on-field drills prior to Wednesday's game against the Giants, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

He did some agility work in the outfield grass as he works back from a hamstring strain that carried a return timetable of early September when first diagnosed in early August. While he's making steady progress, the catcher isn't very close to beginning a rehab assignment, per Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. Victor Caratini and Jonathan Lucroy will continue to have a fairly even split of work behind the plate in his absence.

Jackson was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett prior to Wednesday's game against the Marlins.

Brian McCann was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left knee sprain, and he is expected to miss a couple weeks. Tyler Flowers will serve as the primary catcher. Jackson has significant raw power (.286 ISO, 25 HR in 81 games at Triple-A), but he has not hit above .225 since he was at Double-A in 2017.

Diaz (head) is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Nationals.

He departed Monday's game after getting hit by a bat on his catcher's mask, and while he appeared off the bench in Tuesday's game, he will sit to start Wednesday's contest. Jacob Stallings will start behind the dish, hitting seventh.

Diaz (head) stepped in behind the plate to catch for Felipe Vazquez in the ninth inning of Tuesday's win over Washington.

He did not start after getting hit in the mask by a swing and leaving Monday's game, but the fact that Diaz was available to catch a day later means he passed tests for a concussion. The 28-year-old Diaz has underwhelmed with the bat after a strong 2018 season, and he's been downright bad since the break, posting a .456 OPS in 25 games.

Jackson (undisclosed) received a clean bill of health after exiting his game Tuesday at Triple-A Gwinnett and is expected to be promoted to the majors ahead of the Braves' game Wednesday against the Marlins, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

Though Jackson was pulled from his contest at Gwinnett shortly after Brian McCann (knee) exited the Braves' 5-1 win over the Marlins, the former's departure was apparently for injury-related reasons and not a precautionary move. In any case, Jackson's injury wasn't anything concerning, so he'll likely head to Atlanta with McCann set to land on the 10-day injured list ahead of Wednesday's series finale versus Miami. While McCann is on the shelf, Jackson likely won't be asked to play more than one or two times per week behind Tyler Flowers, who takes over as the team's new top backstop.

Smith went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run, a walk and two runs scored in the Dodgers' 16-3 romp over the Blue Jays on Tuesday.

The rookie just continues to impress at the dish, as he's now working on an eight-game hitting streak that has seen him homer five times and knock in 11 runs. Smith is having no trouble with big-league pitching so far, with a .321/.398/.810 slash line to go along with 11 homers and 30 RBI across his 97 plate appearances. While those numbers figure to even out at least a little bit as he logs more at-bats, he's done more than enough to make the case he should be given most of the starts behind the plate for the Dodgers.