MLB Player News

Jansen has gone 4-for-20 (.200) through 10 Grapefruit League games with a double, a home run and a 6:8 BB:K.

Meanwhile, Alejandro Kirk is hitting .417 and has only struck out once in seven spring appearances. Jansen is still penciled in as the Jays' starting catcher, but the 25-year-old has struggled at the plate so far in the big leagues. If he can't improve significantly on his career .208/.297/.370 slash line while Kirk continues to rake, Jansen's defensive skills may not be enough to keep him in the No. 1 spot on the depth chart.

McCann has gone 6-for-23 (.304) with a double and a 1:6 BB:K through eight Grapefruit League games.

Coming off a career-best .289/.360/.536 slash line in 2020, McCann is locked in as the Mets' starting catcher, but it's still reassuring that he's not struggling at the plate this spring. The 30-year-old will be looking to match or exceed the 18 homers and 60 RBI he racked up for the White Sox in 2019, and he could top the career-high 118 games he played that season, considering that his primary backup will be Tomas Nido, who owns a .553 OPS in the majors.

The Blue Jays optioned Moreno to their minor-league camp Thursday.

Moreno last played at Low-A Lansing in 2019, slashing .280/.337/.485 over 341 plate appearances. He'll likely make the jump to High-A Vancouver or possibly even Double-A New Hamsphire to begin 2021 as the Blue Jays look to get his developmental timeline back on track following the cancellation of the 2020 minor-league season. Among the young backstops in the organization, Moreno is third in the pecking order behind Danny Jansen and Alejandro Kirk.

Contreras, who slotted in as the No. 2 hitter for Wednesday's Cactus League game against the Padres, could hit there regularly this season, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Wednesday's lineup could be a preview of Opening Day for the Cubs, with Ian Happ and Contreras in the top two slots, followed by Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Joc Pederson and Javier Baez. Rizzo hit in the No. 2 hole a team-high 38 times last season, but manager David Ross said he'll "definitely consider" moving Contreras up and having Rizzo and Bryant hit 3-4. Contreras should post strong numbers no matter where he slots into the lineup, but hitting second should give him more at-bats over the course of the season.

Murphy, starting at designated hitter for the second straight game, went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run, a walk and two runs overall in a Cactus League win over the Royals on Tuesday.

The veteran backstop has ceded duties behind the dish to Luis Torrens the last two games while Murphy finishes recovering from a minor hip issue. The round tripper, part of a 15-hit barrage for Seattle, helped boost Murphy's spring average back over the Mendoza Line and marked his first time leaving the yard in exhibition play.

Grandal (knee) will catch in Thursday's spring game against the Royals, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Grandal has spent some time as the designated hitter for the White Sox recently while dealing with knee inflammation, but he'll be behind the plate for the first time this spring during Thursday's Cactus League game. It's not yet clear whether the 32-year-old's slow start to camp will impact his availability for Opening Day, but Grandal will have two weeks to work behind the dish before the regular season starts.

Vazquez went 1-for-1 with a double and a walk in Tuesday's spring game against Atlanta.

Vazquez has hit safely in four straight Cactus League games and six of seven. He's made himself into a much better hitter since his early days in MLB when he came up as a defense-first backstop. The 30-year-old catcher's hard-hit rate has hovered around 40 percent the last two seasons after being below 30 percent during his first three seasons. That's made him a viable option as a DH, putting his bat in the lineup when he gets a break from catching. Vazquez, who appeared in 138 games in 2019, will be Boston's starting catcher in 2021.

Maile recorded his first hit of spring, a home run, in Tuesday's exhibition game against the Dodgers.

Maile has not done much hitting this spring, but he has not had many opportunities to do so, only appearing in five games thus far. He will open the season in the minors, barring any unforeseen developments with the Brewers' catching situation.

Nido (foot) will catch and bat ninth for the Mets in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins, Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News reports.

Nido will re-enter the Mets' spring lineup for the first time since March 7 after being withheld from action for just over a week with a bruised left foot. The 26-year-old looks on track to enter the season as the top backup to No. 1 catcher James McCann.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he expects Higashioka (side) to catch in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Higashioka wasn't available to make his scheduled start Tuesday against the Tigers after experiencing some side soreness, but the Yankees don't seem too concerned about the injury. Boone noted that Higashioka had a "good day" in terms of treatment while he sat out Tuesday, and the 30-year-old will likely be able to work out in some capacity over the next few days. Higashioka looks on track to enter Opening Day as the top backup to Gary Sanchez.