MLB Player News

Delay will open the 2023 season as the Pirates' backup catcher, Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review reports.

The 28-year-old beat out both Tyler Heineman and Kevin Plawecki for the backup gig behind starter Austin Hedges. Delay slashed just .213/.265/.271 over his first 57 major-league games last season in Pittsburgh, and his minor-league stats aren't much better.

Heineman was reassigned Tuesday to the minor-league side of Pirates camp.

Austin Hedges will open the 2023 season as the primary catcher in Pittsburgh, with Jason Delay backing him up. Heineman, 31, is a career .214/.279/.276 hitter in 236 plate appearances at the MLB level.

Leon re-signed with the Rangers on a minor-league contract Tuesday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Leon requested and was given his release Monday but is quickly back in the organization on a re-worked deal. The veteran catcher will give the club some quality depth at Triple-A Round Rock.

Contreras went 2-for-3 with two home runs and six RBI in Monday's exhibition contest.

Contreras did not go yard over his first 15 appearances of the spring, but he made up for lost time by socking a pair of three-run shots Monday. Expect him to be behind the plate when the Brewers kick off the regular season Thursday against the Cubs.

McCann (oblique) is "likely" to need a stint on the injured list, Orioles general manager Mike Elias told MLB.com on Monday.

McCann tweaked his left oblique back on March 20 and hasn't played since. While the catcher considered it to be a "minor" strain, it doesn't look like he'll be well enough to avoid a trip to the IL. Anthony Bemboom looms as the likely roster replacement.

O'Hoppe has been informed he's made the Opening Day roster, Sarah Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Times reports.

O'Hoppe was a strong candidate regardless, but he is at least in part going to make the Angels out of spring training because Max Stassi (hip) will open the year on the injured list. The backstop has been solid in spring play with a .799 OPS over 36 plate appearances, and he likely will see the majority of the reps behind the plate while Stassi is on the shelf.

Stassi was placed on the 10-day injured list with a hip injury by the Angels on Monday, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

Stassi hurt his hip during an appearance in a minor-league game Sunday. It's not clear at this point how much time he might miss. With Stassi on the shelf, Logan O'Hoppe now rejoins the big club to share time at catcher with Matt Thaiss.

The Rangers released Leon on Monday.

The Rangers are planning on carrying only two catchers (Jonah Heim and Mitch Garver) on the Opening Day roster and have another backstop with more upside (Sam Huff) waiting in the wings at Triple-A Round Rock, so Leon will exit the organization and pursue options elsewhere. Even if he finds his way onto an MLB roster at some point in 2023, Leon likely won't serve as anything more than No. 2 option behind the dish.

O'Hoppe now appears to be on track to open the season as a member of the Angels' 26-man active roster after manager Phil Nevin acknowledged Sunday that Max Stassi (hip) will likely begin the campaign on the injured list, FieldLevelMedia.com reports.

Given that the Angels want the 23-year-old to play regularly along with the fact that his primary competition for the No. 2 catcher role, Matt Thaiss, was out of minor-league options, O'Hoppe looked in line to open the season at Triple-A Salt Lake as recently as two weeks ago. However, with Stassi recently missing time in camp due to a personal matter before hurting his hip in a minor-league game Sunday, O'Hoppe looks like he could get the chance to see regular reps with the big club. O'Hoppe demonstrated impressive power-hitting and on-base skills at the Double-A level and in his brief taste of the majors in 2022, so he may be worth rostering in two-catcher leagues while he has a fairly clear path to playing time in the big leagues. Stassi took a big step back offensively in 2022 and likely didn't enter the season with much job security, so O'Hoppe could get the chance to stake a permanent claim to the No. 1 catching gig if he thrives early on in the campaign.

Angels manager Phil Nevin said Sunday that Stassi is unlikely to be included on the Opening Day roster after experiencing hip soreness while playing in a minor-league spring training game, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

The Angels may not have a full picture of Stassi's injury until after he presumably goes through more extensive tests Monday, but the hip issue coupled with an unspecified personal matter that has recently kept him away from camp looks as though it'll prevent him from opening the season on the 26-man active roster. Stassi's expected absence to begin the campaign will pave the way for both Logan O'Hoppe and Matt Thaiss to make the Opening Day roster, with O'Hoppe representing the higher-upside fantasy option of the two.