MLB Player News

Mejia was placed on the COVID-19 injured list Friday after testing positive for the virus, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Mejia went 2-for-3 with a home run, a double, three RBI and two runs Wednesday against the Cubs, and he'll now be unavailable coming off Thursday's scheduled off day. Mike Zunino should continue to work as Tampa Bay's primary catcher, and Rene Pinto was promoted to serve as the backup.

Garver is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the A's.

Garver has started behind the plate in only seven of Texas' 12 games so far, but he also has three starts at designated hitter. He'll receive the day off Friday with Jonah Heim catching and Willie Calhoun as the DH.

Grandal isn't starting Friday's game against the Twins.

Grandal will get a chance to reset after he went just 1-for-21 with two RBI, a walk and five strikeouts in his last six appearances. Reese McGuire will start behind the dish and bat eighth.

Bart (hand) is starting Friday's game against the Nationals, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Bart was hit by a pitch Wednesday against the Mets and missed two games, but he'll be back in action for Friday's series opener. He's hitting .207 with two homers, a double, four runs, four RBI and a stolen base this year.

Hedges isn't starting Friday's game against the Yankees.

Hedges has gone 3-for-10 with a run, an RBI and a strikeout in his last three starts, and he'll retreat to the bench for the second time in the last three games. Bryan Lavastida will start behind the dish and bat eighth.

Higashioka will sit Friday against Cleveland.

Higashioka sits for the second straight game, marking the first time he's been on the bench for back-to-back games this season. His .097/.125/.129 slash line suggests that he could find himself on the bench more often going forward. Jose Trevino remains the starter behind the plate.

Narvaez isn't starting Friday's game against Philadelphia.

Narvaez went 2-for-3 with a run in Wednesday's win over Pittsburgh, and he'll retreat to the bench for the second time in the last three games. Victor Caratini will start behind the dish and bat ninth.

Contreras went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Thursday's loss to the Pirates.

Chicago mustered only four hits and three runs, making Contreras arguably their most effective hitter on the night. The catcher is now batting .237 this season, which was his final average last year , though his .815 OPS is a bit ahead of his .778 mark from 2021. Fantasy managers look to Contreras for some pop, as he supplied 21 home runs a season ago and a career-best 24 back in 2019. He has two long balls through 10 games this season.

Murphy went 3-of-4 with a home run, a double and three RBI in Thursday's 6-4 win over the Orioles.

Murphy not only turned in a great day at the plate, he was instrumental on defense in a questionable call that led to the ejection of Trey Mancini and Baltimore manager Brandon Hyde. Backing up the throw to first, Murphy tagged Mancini out after he ran past first base and allegedly made a move toward second, leading the catcher to smartly tag him out. Murphy has exceeded expectations early this season but had settled into a bit of an offensive slump in the series with Baltimore, going 0-for-10 leading into Thursday's game.

Raleigh isn't starting Thursday's game against the Rangers.

The Mariners haven't utilized a primary catcher early in the year, instead opting for a three-man committee. Raleigh will retreat to the bench for the third time in the last four games, while Tom Murphy takes over behind the plate.