MLB Player News

Salazar was called up from Triple-A Sugar Land on Friday, Julia Morales of AT&T SportsNet Southwest reports.

After being sent down to Sugar Land on Monday, Salazar will return to the big leagues and replace Yordan Alvarez (oblique) on the 26-man roster after Alvarez was placed on the 10-day injured list Friday. Salazar has gone 2-for-14 with a run scored over limited action with the Astros this season and he'll likely operate as an additional bat off the bench while drawing an occasional start behind the plate. His addition to the roster could be a sign Houston plans to give Yainer Diaz more time at DH while Alvarez is sidelined.

Diaz is starting at designated hitter and batting eighth Friday in Cleveland.

If you want to squint for a silver lining following the Yordan Alvarez (oblique) injury, it's that Diaz should see more opportunities in the DH spot. He's already been catching more of late and has a 1.029 OPS, with all three of his home runs coming in his last 35 plate appearances.

Haase isn't starting Friday against the Diamondbacks.

Haase's slump at the plate has begun to cost him significant playing time, as he's been phased out of the picture in left field and DH while splitting starts behind the plate with Jake Rogers. Rogers will start Friday and bat eighth.

Kirk is out of the starting lineup Friday against the Twins.

Tyler Heineman will catch and bat ninth versus the Twins and right-hander Sonny Gray. Kirk has posted a relatively disappointing .260/.350/.351 slash line with three home runs and 18 RBI through 51 games (177 plate appearances) this season for the Blue Jays.

Moreno is absent from the lineup for Friday's game againt the Tigers.

Moreno had been slated for a day off Thursday before that game got postponed, and the Diamondbacks have elected to use the opportunity to give him additional rest. Jose Herrera will catch Merrill Kelly in Moreno's place.

Rutschman went 2-for-5 with a run scored in Thursday's 6-3 victory over Milwaukee.

The 25-year-old is now batting .372 (16-for-43) with a .903 OPS over his last 11 games. Rutschman has played nearly every day in his sophomore campaign, serving as the DH when taking a break from catching duties. He's slashing .283/.399/.425 with eight homers, 21 runs scored and 28 RBI while tallying more walks (45) than strikeouts (38).

Alvarez went 2-for-5 with two home runs, a walk and three RBI in Thursday's extra-inning loss to Atlanta.

Alvarez worked as the team's DH in the contest and justified his placement in that role with a pair of big blasts. The backstop has overcome a slow start to the campaign with a powerful 16-game stretch during which he's swatted eight homers, driven in 17 runs, scored 10 times and posted a .283/.333/.774 slash line. Alvarez is now tied for second among big-league catchers with 11 homers on the season.

D'Arnaud went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run, four total runs and two walks in Thursday's 13-10 extra-inning win over the Mets.

The veteran backstop hit one of five long balls for Atlanta in the contest, contributing to the team's comeback with a two-run shot in the eighth inning. The multi-hit effort was d'Arnaud's fifth in 20 games this season. He is the clear No. 2 option behind Sean Murphy on the catcher depth chart but has still provided plenty of offense, slashing .303/.346/.434 with two homers, 10 RBI and 10 runs over 81 plate appearances.

X-rays on Barnes' right wrist came back negative Thursday, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.

Barnes left Thursday's game against the Reds after taking a fastball to the hand, but he appears to have avoided a major injury. It's possible the Dodgers sideline Barnes for a few days to ensure he's fully-healed his next time out, but he should be able to avoid the IL.

Barnes was sent for X-rays on his right hand Thursday, Matthew Moreno of DodgerBlue.com reports.

The veteran catcher took an Ian Gibaut fastball off his hand in the ninth inning of the Dodgers' 6-0 win at Cincinnati on Thursday and, manager Dave Roberts acknowledged afterward that it "didn't look good, didn't sound good." Los Angeles will have to make a 40-man roster move for a new backup to Will Smith if Barnes requires an IL stint.