MLB Player News

Contreras is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Pirates.

Contreras will receive a standard maintenance day following a pair of starts behind the plate. In his place, Victor Caratini will catch Kyle Hendricks and bat sixth in Thursday's matinee. Over the course of the first two weeks of the 2018 campaign, Contreras is slashing .326/.408/.488 with six extra-base hits and one RBI.

Grandal went 3-for-4 with a double, a home run and a pair of RBI in Wednesday's loss to the Athletics.

Grandal was the only Dodger bat to do significant damage to Oakland starter Daniel Mengden in a rough loss. The 29-year-old owns a .625 slugging percentage despite tallying just four extra-base hits so far, which is a reminder of the strict platoon that limits him to starts against right-handed pitchers. Grandal won't see as many plate appearances as traditional starting backstops, but he should provide enough pop (49 homers over the last two seasons) to help out fantasy owners at the catcher position.

X-rays on Plawecki's hand came back negative Wednesday, Matt Ehalt of The Bergen Record reports.

Plawecki was hit by a pitch on his hand during the eighth inning Wednesday. While he was initially able to stay in the contest, Plawecki was pinch hit for later in the inning when his turn came up again. Fortunately, initial tests indicate the backstop avoided any breaks in his hand. This is certainly a relief for the Mets, who lost starting catcher Travis d'Arnaud earlier in the day to a partially torn UCL. Consider Plawecki day-to-day for now; with an off day Thursday, he may not be forced to miss any action.

Plawecki is in line to be the Mets' primary catcher moving forward with Travis d'Arnaud (elbow) potentially out for the season, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Plawecki entered the season in a timeshare behind the plate with d'Arnaud, but with the latter now possibly going under the knife to repair a partially torn UCL, Plawecki could spend the remainder of the season as the main starter. The 27-year-old is off to a bit of a slow start at the plate, collecting just three hits in his first 19 at-bats, but he batted .260 in 100 at-bats last season. At the very least, he's worth rostering in two-catcher formats now that he'll have a full workload for the rest of 2018.

Nido was called up to the big leagues Wednesday to replace the injured Travis d'Arnaud (elbow), Tim Britton of The Athletic New York reports.

D'Arnaud has a partially torn UCL which could require Tommy John surgery, in which case Nido could be in the majors for a long time. The 23-year-old has an unremarkable profile and doesn't project to be much more than a backup catcher. He went 3-for-10 in a brief stint in the majors last season, but spent the majority of the year at Double-A Binghamton, where he hit .232/.287/.354 in 404 plate appearances.

D'Arnaud was placed on the disabled list with a partial tear of his right UCL on Wednesday, Tim Britton of The Athletic New York reports.

Tommy John surgery is a possibility for d'Arnaud, and if that happens, he could miss an extended period of time. It's hard luck for the oft-injured catcher, who appeared in a career-high 112 games last season. Tomas Nido was called up to fill his spot on the roster and will back up Kevin Plawecki, who will move from a timeshare to a full-time starter role.

Hedges is not in the starting lineup Wednesday against the Rockies, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Hedges isn't making very much contact this season, with a 38.2 percent strikeout rate and a .188 batting average. He has at least chipped in with two homers and a .438 slugging percentage, which should be enough to keep him on the field when combined with his solid defense. A.J. Ellis will start behind the plate in his place.

Realmuto (back) got six at-bats as a DH in Tuesday's extended spring training game Tuesday, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

It was his first game action since being shut down March 11 with a bone bruise in his back. Once Realmuto is able to catch in extended spring, expect him to spend a couple of games with a full-season affiliate to complete his rehab assignment before joining the Marlins sometime next week.

Hedges went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 5-2 victory over the Rockies.

Hedges tied the game at two with a solo blast off of Tyler Anderson in the fifth inning, opening the door for Hunter Renfroe to put the game away with a three-run shot in the seventh. The free-swinging catcher is living up to his pre-draft expectations, providing power (two homers) for his owners to go along with an ugly batting average (.188 through 32 at-bats). Hedges has started six of the Friars' last seven contests, putting his minor back ailment in the rearview mirror.

Herrera has been suspended for 50-games without pay after testing positive for Methylhexaneamine and Oxilofrine, Zach Buchanan of The Athletic Arizona reports.

Herrera will begin serving the suspension immediately, keeping him sidelined through May. The 21-year-old is currently on Low-A Kane County's roster. He hit a lackluster .208/.261/.290 across 58 games with the affiliate in 2017.