MLB Player News

Smith went 2-for-4 with a home run, three RBI and a walk in Sunday's 14-4 win over the Mets.

Smith blasted a solo home run in the first inning off Carlos Carrasco. The catcher homered for the third day in a row. In addition, he added an eighth-inning single that drove in a pair of runs. On the season, he is slashing .266/.377/.502 with 18 long balls, 59 RBI and 53 runs scored in 368 plate appearances.

Kirk went 1-for-4 with a two-run double in Sunday's 8-3 win over the Mariners.

Picking up his fourth start in six games, Kirk provided a big two-out extra-base hit in the third inning to help the Blue Jays dig out of an early 1-0 hole. Given his recent workload, Kirk appears to have moved ahead of Reese McGuire as Option 1A behind the plate for Toronto.

Stephenson went 1-for-1 with a two-run homer in Sunday's 7-4 win over the Phillies.

Stephenson was out of the lineup for the second time in the last three games, but he entered the contest in the eighth inning and blasted his ninth home run of the season. The 24-year-old is in the midst of a power surge across his last three appearances, and he's gone 5-for-9 with three home runs, four RBI and four runs during that time.

Perez went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer in Sunday's 7-2 loss to the Cardinals.

Perez provided the Royals' only meaningful offense Sunday, clocking a mammoth 450-foot blast in the eighth inning to break up the shutout. It was his 30th long ball of the season and the first time he's reached that mark in his career. The All-Star catcher improved his slash line to .277/.310/.522 through 471 plate appearances. Perez has gone 7-for-20 (.350) with three home runs and six RBI over the last five games.

Hedges went 2-for-5 with a two-RBI double and two runs scored in Sunday's 11-0 win over Detroit.

The catcher knocked in a pair during Cleveland's six-run rally in the second inning before scoring on a Jose Ramirez home run. Hedges also scored in the third after hitting a single. The 28-year-old has recorded multiple hits in four of his last 10 games, but he's also gone hitless in five of those contests. He's posted a .178/.216/.267 slash line with five home runs, 21 RBI, 20 runs scored and two doubles through 209 plate appearances.

Nido is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Dodgers.

Nido started behind the dish in Saturday's 2-1 loss and went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts, but he'll be back on the bench for the series finale while James McCann catches for starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco. Given that Nido has picked up five starts in August to McCann's nine, Nido looks like the clear No. 2 backstop for New York.

Nola is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks.

After catching in four of the Padres' last five games while going 4-for-14 at the plate, Nola will get some rest for the series finale. Victor Caratini will catch starting pitcher Craig Stammen on Sunday.

Diaz is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Giants.

Diaz is getting a routine maintenance day after he went 1-for-8 while starting the past two games at catcher. Dom Nunez replaces Diaz behind the dish.

Stassi is not in the lineup Sunday against the Astros.

Stassi started the first two games of the series and will receive a breather in the finale. Kurt Suzuki will take over behind the plate for the Halos.

Sanchez (COVID-19) will report to Double-A Somerset for a rehab assignment Sunday and could rejoin the Yankees on Tuesday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Sanchez is expected to receive two or three at-bats with Somerset before rejoining the big-league club. The 28-year-old has been on the shelf since Aug. 5 after testing positive for COVID-19, but he's nearing his return to the active roster.