MLB Player News

Bart suffered a fractured right thumb Tuesday while playing in the Arizona Fall League, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

The fractured thumb will cause Bart to miss the rest of the AZL season. The 22-year-old had hit three home runs with six RBI over nine games played in the Arizona Fall League.

Smith is out of the lineup Sunday for Game 3 of the NLDS between the Dodgers and the Nationals, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Smith will take a seat Sunday in a tilt against the Nationals as Russell Martin will get the nod behind the plate in favor of the rookie. Through the first two games, Smith has gone 1-for-7 with three strikeouts and a walk. The righty showed flashes of solid power during the regular season but also had a tendency to strike out in bunches. After Smith struggled in his first two career playoff games, the Dodgers will turn to the veteran in Martin in a decisive Game 3. After all, Martin and starter Hyun-Jin Ryu have combined for a 1.52 ERA in 20 starts this season.

Maldonado is in the lineup for Game 2 of the ALDS against the Rays on Saturday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Maldonado has had a fairly consistent role in Houston since coming over at the deadline, hitting .202/.316/.464 for his new team. He'll bat ninth Saturday and catch Gerrit Cole.

Gomes is in the starting lineup for Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Dodgers on Thursday.

After sitting in favor of Kurt Suzuki during the wild-card matchup, Gomes will receive the start for the first game of the NLDS against right-hander Walker Buehler. Suzuki will retreat to the bench for Game 1.

Murphy will start Wednesday's AL Wild Card Game against Tampa Bay.

Murphy and Josh Phegley had split time behind the plate down the stretch, alternating starts over the final six games. Murphy gets the nod for the critical one-game series, batting ninth.

Gomes will be on the bench for Tuesday's wild-card matchup with the Brewers, Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports reports.

The Nationals rode Gomes heavily down the stretch while Kurt Suzuki contended with elbow inflammation for much of September, but the latter will get the nod for the win-or-go-home game now that he's healthy again. Gomes could be in store for a limited role for the duration of the postseason before likely parting ways with the Nationals over the winter. Washington is expected to decline his $9 million club option for 2020.

Grandal went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run Sunday in the Brewers' 4-3 loss to the Rockies in 13 innings.

The home run was Grandal's 28th of the season, establishing a new career high in the category. Grandal was pulled from the contest after four innings, but that was presumably only for rest purposes since the Cardinals were well on their way to securing a win over the Cubs, locking up the National League Central crown in the process. The Brewers were still able to clinch a wild-card spot last week, so expect Grandal to check in back behind the plate for Tuesday's win-or-go-home matchup with the Nationals. Grandal shouldered one of the heavier workloads among all catchers down the stretch, starting in each of the Brewers' final nine games.

Campusano has been removed from Peoria's roster in the Arizona Fall League.

Campusano struggled in four games with Peoria, going 1-for-13 with six strikeouts. No reason has been given for the 21-year-old's removal from the roster. Campusano was the co-MVP of the California League this season, hitting .325 with 15 home runs in 109 games with Lake Elsinore.

Thaiss went 3-for-4 with two homers, a double and four RBI in Sunday's loss to Houston.

Thaiss got the Angels on the board with a solo blast to center field in the third inning, slugged a two-run shot in the sixth, and capped the scoring with an RBI double in the eighth. The long balls snapped a 23-game homerless streak while the four runs batted in tied Thaiss's career high. The 24-year-old finishes his first major-league campaign with a .211/.293/.422 slash line, eight homers and 23 RBI in 53 games. He'll prepare for 2020 by working on his skills at third base while playing winter ball in the Dominican Republic during the offseason.

Smith went 2-for-3 with a home run, three RBI and a run scored in the Dodgers' 9-0 win over the Giants on Sunday.

Smith went on a 12-game homerless streak in the month of September before finally hitting one out last Sunday. One week later and he has his second home run of the month and his 15th of his bright rookie season. The 24-year-old catcher struggled a bit with consistency at the plate for certain stretches of the season but possesses immense power and should play a key role as he gets set for his first-ever appearance in the postseason.