MLB Player News

Naylor will be a part of the Indians' 60-man player pool this season.

Naylor is the Indians' top catching prospect, and he will get to train with some of the organization's best pitching prospects at an alternate site while the other three catchers in the 60-man pool will train with fellow big leaguers at Progressive Field. Naylor hit .243/.313/.421 with 11 home runs and seven steals at Low-A last year.

Stephenson will be a part of the Reds' 60-man player pool this season.

While Stephenson is on the 40-man roster and viewed as the team's catcher of the future, he is unlikely to see a major role in 2020. Tucker Barnhart, Curt Casali and Kyle Farmer are the only catchers who will be training at Great American Ball Park.

Heim, who was in a heated competition for the backup catcher job when spring training was suspended, is now highly likely to make the Athletics' Opening Day roster, Melissa Lockard of The Athletic reports.

Heim turned plenty of heads in Cactus League play with a .325 average (8-for-25), enough that he'd made up significant ground on Austin Allen in the battle for the backup catcher job by the time play was paused. While it may have been a close call for manager Bob Melvin had the regular season unfolded under normal circumstances with teams limited to 26-man rosters, Saxon notes the fact there are now four extra slots to work with almost certainly serves to lock in spots for both young backstops. The fact Heim is already on the 40-man roster only ups his chances of staying put when the regular season begins.

Stubbs will likely be part of the Astros' expanded roster, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Stubbs lost out on the backup catcher job to Dustin Garneau in spring training and was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock, but the luxury of an expanded roster means Houston can carry a third catcher. The Astros have talked about using Stubbs at other positions, which could benefit him as the team trims its roster from 30 to 28 two weeks into the season, then from 28 to 26 two weeks later.

Herrera will be a part of the Cardinals' taxi squad this season, Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com reports.

Herrera was a part of major-league camp during spring training this year, where he went 2-for-9 over five games before play was suspended. While the 20-year-old is likely viewed as the Cardinals' catcher of the future within the organization, it's unlikely that he'll see significant playing time in the majors this season given his lack of experience above High-A.

Trevino (finger) is ready to go when baseball resumes its season, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

Trevino fractured the knuckle of his right index finger in spring training, but he will be ready when training camp opens July 1. He is expected to serve as the third catcher behind Robinson Chirinos and Jeff Mathis.

Sanchez should be ready to go when the season resumes, Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media reports.

Little has been said about Sanchez's status since play was suspended, but the backstop downplayed the severity of his back tightness when it was brought to light in March and has since posted multiple videos to social media of himself doing baseball workouts. The long layoff should only benefit Sanchez as he seeks to maintain his position as the league's premier power-hitting catcher.

Bart will be in major-league camp once play resumes but likely isn't a candidate for the Opening Day roster, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.

Bart was reassigned to minor-league camp in March before the season was suspended, but he'll now get a chance to gain more experience against higher-level talent before the regular season gets underway. The catcher appeared in just 22 games at the Double-A level in 2019, but he hit .280/.329/.503 with 17 home runs and 49 RBI over 80 total games in the minors last year. It's unclear what level the 23-year-old will be assigned to once the season begins.

Hernandez was released by the Cardinals on Monday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Hernandez signed a minor-league deal in January as a non-roster invitee, but he failed to record a hit over seven plate appearances in spring training before play was suspended. The 26-year-old has struggled in recent seasons and hit just .192/.258/.355 with six home runs and 44 strikeouts over 54 games played at Double-A and Triple-A in 2019.

Knizner is viewed less as the organization's catcher of the future than Ivan Herrera, Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Hummel answers a question from a reader about whether Knizner is a future trade chip due to the presence of Herrera by noting he believes the former can still be an important member of the Cardinals. In addition to serving as a potential backup catcher and first baseman, Knizner could be a natural to fill a designated hitter role if it's instituted in the National League beginning in the 2022 season. The 25-year-old has essentially been in a holding pattern at Triple-A Memphis for the last two seasons while Yadier Molina continues to serve as the unquestioned top catcher when healthy, although Knizner did log his first 18 games of big-league action in 2019. It's also worth noting Knizner is significantly further along his developmental journey than Herrera; therefore, depending on a variety of factors, including the likelihood of a cancelled 2020 minor-league season and expanded rosters at the big-league level this year, Knizner could still put in at least two seasons at the major-league level before Herrera is ready to make his Cardinals debut.