MLB Player News

Contreras went 2-for-3 with a walk, a home run, two runs scored and two RBI in Wednesday's 11-0 win over the Mariners.

The Cubs' lineup has been clicking lately, and Contreras has been right in the middle of the attack, as he now has eight home runs and 19 RBI this season. The 26-year-old catcher had just 10 home runs and 54 RBI in a down 2018 campaign, and he looks well on his way to shattering those marks in 2019.

Barnes is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Giants.

Barnes will take a seat for Wednesday's series finale after starting the previous two games behind the dish, going 2-for-8 with a double and two RBI in those contests. Russell Martin is starting at backstop and hitting sixth in this one.

Hedges remains on the bench Wednesday against the Braves, Gabe Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Hedges finds himself on the bench in consecutive games for the first time this season. Francisco Mejia draws another start despite going 0-for-3 with three strikeouts in Tuesday's contest.

Mejia is in the lineup, catching and hitting eighth against the Braves on Tuesday.

Austin Hedges will head to the bench to make way for Mejia. The 23-year-old has appeared in 13 games so far this season, hitting a meager .158 in 38 at-bats.

Hedges is not in the lineup Tuesday against the Braves.

Hedges remains the primary catcher in San Diego, starting 19 games compared to 11 for Francisco Mejia. Hedges has struggled at the plate, hitting .175/.235/.381, but Mejia has done even worse, posting a .158/.220/.237 line, so there's little reason to believe a change is imminent.

Gomes isn't starting Tuesday against the Cardinals.

Gomes went 1-for-3 with a walk in Monday's series opener, but he'll get the night off Tuesday. Kurt Suzuki is starting behind the dish and will bat fifth.

Barnhart is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Mets.

Barnhart had been behind the plate for each of the past three days, so he'll just be picking up a routine breather in the second game of the series. Curt Casali checks in at catcher and as the No. 5 hitter in the lineup.

Contreras is slashing .333/.400/.457 through 22 games for High-A Florida with one home run and seven RBI.

Atlanta's No. 9 fantasy prospect still isn't getting much in-game power, but he does have seven doubles and it could only be a matter of time before those start going over the fence. Contreras is also heating up in a big way, banging out 10 hits in the last four games, and his 9:19 BB:K is solid for a 21-year-old in the Florida State League. His big-league debut is probably still at least a couple years away, but he's firmly establishing himself as the organization's catcher of the future.

Contreras went 1-for-6 with a solo home run in Sunday's 6-5, 15-inning win over the Diamondbacks.

It was a mixed bag for Contreras in this marathon game, as he connected for his seventh home run of the season but also struck out four times in his other five at-bats. Fantasy owners will excuse a few extra strikeouts for power, and Contreras is on pace to surpass his previous career high in home runs, which was 21 in 2017.

Nido went 1-for-1 with a double and two RBI in a pinch-hit appearance Sunday against Milwaukee.

Nido was called on in the eighth inning to pinch hit and chose a good time for his first knock of the 2019 season, delivering a two-run double to right field that extended New York's lead to three. The 25-year-old backstop was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse earlier in the day and will serve as the backup catcher moving forward after Travis d'Arnaud was designated for assignment.