MLB Player News

Diaz is not in Saturday's lineup against the Padres.

He is hitting .324 with an 8:5 K:BB in his last 21 games. Jacob Stallings will start behind the dish, hitting eighth.

Caratini is starting at first base and batting seventh in Saturday's game against the Mets.

Regular first baseman Anthony Rizzo is getting his first day off since May 17, which opens up first for Caratini. The 25-year-old is slashing .290/.389/.452 in limited playing time this season.

Casual started again Friday night, his seventh start in the last 11 games, going 0-for-3 with two walks and an RBI. Before the game Reds manager David Bell confirmed that the catching position is closer to a timeshare between Casali and Tucker Barnhart, rather than Casali backing up Barnhart, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. "I've talked to both guys," Bell said. "The way I see it, I don't know how the split is going to turn out. It may still be Tucker ends up getting 60-40, 70-30 or maybe at times it is closer to 50-50."

After Friday's game Casali is now hitting .273/.347/.445, whereas Barnhart has struggled, hitting just .196/.297/.393 in 59 games. Barnhart has the contract, plus the defensive reputation, that will keep giving him chances, but he's no longer a default starter over Casali.

Gomes went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a 4-3 victory against the Braves on Friday.

This was Gomes' first homer since April 26. Since then, he only had five extra-base hits in 32 games prior to Friday. Gomes is batting .224 with a measly .628 OPS, three home runs, 20 RBI and 10 runs in 156 at-bats this season.

Wallach (concussion) was transferred to the 60-day injured list Friday.

Wallach has been out since late May. He recently resumed baseball activities but will now be ineligible to return before late July. The transaction clears a spot on the 40-man roster for Wilkin Castillo, whose contract was selected after Jorge Alfaro landed on the injured list with a concussion of his own.

Castillo's contract was purchased by the Marlins on Friday.

The 35-year-old has just 37 big-league plate appearances to his name, none of which have come since 2009. He'll back up Bryan Holaday with both Jorge Alfaro and Chad Wallach recovering from concussions.

Grandal is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Reds.

Grandal is in the middle of a small slump, grabbing just three hits in his last seven games. Manny Pina will start behind the plate Friday.

Hedges remains on the bench for the third straight game Friday against the Pirates.

There haven't been reports of Hedges battling an injury, so it's possible he's simply fallen behind Francisco Mejia on the depth chart. His .185/.251/.315 slash line would make that seem like a reasonable move if not for the fact that Mejia is hitting .177/.212/.306 himself.

Barnhart is not in the lineup for Friday's game against Milwaukee.

Barnhart and Curt Casali have alternated starts behind the plate for the last seven games. Casali takes his turn Friday, but Barnhart could be back in action Saturday if the pattern continues.

Barnes went 3-for-4 with a home run, double and two RBI in a victory over San Francisco on Thursday.

Barnes' blast -- a two-run shot to left field -- was part of a five-run fourth inning that chased starter Madison Bumgarner. It was his first home run since May 3 and fifth overall this season. Prior to Thursday, Barnes had struggled mightily in June, hitting a microscopic .087 (2-for-23) with no extra-base hits. Perhaps Thursday's performance will be a catalyst to better production.