MLB Player News

Higashioka was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Thursday, Conor Foley of The Times-Tribune reports.

The club has yet to announce a corresponding move, although Gary Sanchez, who's been nursing some leg tightness of late, could be headed to the injured list as a result. Higashioka has gone 3-for-16 with a double and two RBI in four games this season with the RailRiders.

Mejia is out of the lineup against the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

Mejia continues to share work with Austin Hedges, as he'll head to the bench after starting two straight games. Neither backstop is hitting particularly well to start the season, and they should be expected to continue to split duty unless one starts to separate from the other with some more consistent offensive output.

Hedges is catching and hitting eighth for San Diego's game against the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

Hedges will slide back into the lineup after sitting two out of the last three games. He's hitting .200 over 25 at-bats and is 1-for-17 over his five starts in the month of April, so he'll look to get on track at the plate in this contest against Diamondbacks starter Zack Godley.

Kelly is not in the lineup Thursday against the Padres.

Caleb Joseph will get his first start of the year behind the plate and will hit eighth in Kelly's place. Alex Avila (quadriceps) was placed on the 10-day injury list Sunday, leaving the catcher spot open to Kelly, Joseph and John Ryan Murphy. Kelly has started four out of the 12 games this year and should continue to see limited playing time as long as Arizona chooses to carry three backstops.

Contreras will get the day off Thursday against the Pirates.

Contreras has started the season on the right foot, hitting .276 with three homers. Victor Caratini will get the start behind the plate in his absence.

Vazquez is not in the lineup Thursday against the Blue Jays.

Vazquez remains the primary catcher behind the plate in Boston, starting eight games to Blake Swihart's five. Swihart is doing what he can to change that, hitting .353 while Vazquez is hitting just .185, and the pair has been alternating starts over the last eight games. The balance could continue to shift in Swihart's favor should that pattern continue.

Perez is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Tigers.

He'll retreat to the bench on getaway day, affording Kevin Plawecki a turn behind the plate for the first time in the series. Relatively speaking, Perez has been wielding a hot bat of late with four hits -- including a home run -- and three RBI over 12 at-bats, but his career .205/.297/.340 slash line offers a more accurate picture of what to expect from him moving forward.

Barnes is not in Thursday's lineup against the Cardinals.

In the matinee in St. Louis, Barnes will head to the bench after starting four of the last five games. He hit two home runs and logged five hits in the first three games of the season, but he's 3-for-16 (albeit with five walks) over his last six games. Rocky Gale starts at catcher and will hit eighth.

Narvaez is not in Thursday's lineup against the Royals, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

He had started the last four games and will get a rest during Thursday's matinee. Narvaez is hitting .342 with two home runs over his last 38 at-bats. Tom Murphy will start behind the dish, hitting eighth.

Barnhart is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Marlins.

Barnhart is just getting some routine maintenance for a day game after a night game. Curt Casali will check in behind the plate and work in a battery with Sonny Gray.