MLB Player News

Ford is hitting .215/.414/.308 with a homer and four steals across 18 games this year for Single-A Modesto.

That OBP pops off the page, courtesy of his impressive 23.5 percent walk rate, but Ford is also striking out a lot (27.6 percent). The pop he showed in rookie ball last year hasn't materialized so far this season, and it's worth wondering if or when the Mariners will ultimately move him from behind the plate to better take advantage of his speed. All in all, there's a lot of development left to go for last season's No. 12 overall draft pick, but he's got great upside.

Manager Buck Showalter said McCann is being held out of the lineup for Thursday's game in Washington due to a sore left wrist, Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News reports.

The injury explains why McCann is on the bench for a second straight day while Tomas Nido picks up another turn behind the dish. Showalter didn't seem too concerned about the injury to McCann's non-throwing wrist, and the Mets believe the backstop will be ready to resume catching duties during the team's upcoming weekend series with the Mariners.

Bethancourt will start at catcher and bat sixth in Thursday's game in Detroit, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

With top catcher Sean Murphy receiving a breather on a getaway day, Bethancourt will check in behind the dish after manning first base in Wednesday's 9-0 win. Bethancourt was one of several Oakland hitters to enjoy a big day at the dish in the victory, as he went 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBI.

Murphy isn't starting Thursday's series finale against the Tigers, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

After starting each of the team's last five games, Murphy will get a breather Thursday. He reached base in all five of those contests, going 5-for-17 with three doubles, five runs and two RBI. Christian Bethancourt will draw the start behind the plate and bat sixth.

McCann is out of the lineup for Thursday's game in Washington, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

McCann will sit for the second game in a row and may have fallen into a timeshare at catcher with Tomas Nido at this stage. Though both catchers' defensive abilities is valued more than what they contribute at the plate, the Mets likely expected better from McCann than the career-worst .552 OPS he's provided through 64 plate appearances this season.

Ruiz went 2-for-4 with a run scored, an RBI and a stolen base in Wednesday's 8-3 win over the Mets.

The young backstop reached on a single in the first inning and promptly stole second base, an event New York catcher Tomas Nido likely didn't see coming considering Ruiz hadn't stolen a base at any level since he was a 16-year-old in the Dominican Summer League. Ruiz has five multi-hit performances in his last 10 starts, boosting his slash line on the season to .275/.309/.374 with one homer, seven runs and 10 RBI through 97 plate appearances.

Huff started at catcher and went 1-for-3 in Wednesday's 8-2 loss to Kansas City.

Huff was called up after the Rangers placed Mitch Garver (elbow) on the injured list. The power-hitting prospect will back up Jonah Heim while Garver is unavailable.

Contreras went 2-for-3 with a walk, a solo home run and three runs scored in Wednesday's win over the Padres.

Contreras has heated up this month, as he's now batting .458 in May with two home runs, three RBI and six runs scored. For the season, he's up to a robust .935 OPS with four total home runs, as he's been the Cubs' best offensive player. The Chicago catcher should remain a strong fantasy asset as long as he stays healthy.

Stephenson went 3-for-5 with two doubles, four RBI and two runs during Wednesday's 14-11 win over Milwaukee.

Stephenson started the scoring with an RBI double during the the opening frame, and he hit another double in the second to put the Reds up 7-0. It's his seventh multi-hit game and second three-hit effort of the campaign. The 25-year-old has a .322/.397/.559 slash line with three home runs, five doubles, 17 RBI and 11 runs through 20 games.

Plawecki was ejected from Wednesday's game against Atlanta for arguing balls and strikes, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Plawecki was up to bat with two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the sixth inning, and he was ejected after he expressed his displeasure with a called third strike. He went 1-for-3 and was replaced by Christian Vazquez behind the plate.