MLB Player News

Bart is opening the year with High-A San Jose, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.

The No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft demolished short-season pitching after signing, but this will be a much fairer test for the 22-year-old backstop. He will probably rake again in the California League, and his defense is good enough that it won't slow his ascent up the minor-league ranks.

Sanchez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in the Yankees' 8-4 win over the Orioles on Thursday.

The backstop went yard off Alex Cobb in the sixth inning, his third long ball in six games to start the season. Sanchez is hitting just .217 through 23 at-bats, but the three homers and .609 slugging percentage are encouraging signs that he will provide solid power numbers this season, even if he's not hitting for a high average.

Pindea will open the year with Low-A Hagerstown, Mike Rosenbaum of MLB.com reports.

One of the top catching prospects who has yet to make his full-season debut, Pineda could be primed for a breakout year. He just turned 19, but hit .273/.341/.388 (118 wRC+) with four home runs last year in short-season ball, so he is much more advanced at the plate than most of his peers at the position.

Naylor will open the year with Low-A Lake County, MLB.com reports.

This isn't necessarily surprising, but it represents a vote of confidence from the Indians, as prep catching prospects are often promoted pretty slowly through the minors. Naylor hit .274/.381/.402 (126 wRC+) with two home runs and five steals in 33 games in the AZL last year. He should get most of his starts at catcher, but will likely continue to get the occassional start at third base.

Herrera will open the year with Low-A Peoria, Mike Rosenbaum of MLB.com reports.

Herrera is one of the better catching prospects in the lower levels of the minors, and he will be given an aggressive assignment to Low-A as an 18-year-old. He hit .348/.423/.500 with a 15.4 percent strikeout rate in 28 games in the Gulf Coast League last year, but it would not be surprising if he struggled, at least initially, against Low-A pitching.

Stephenson has been assigned to Double-A Pensacola to begin the 2019 season.

Stephenson was the Reds' first-round pick in 2015 and has battled a slew of injuries in his professional career. He was able to make through most of 2018 unscathed, however, hitting .250/.338/.392 in 109 games at High-A Daytona.

Contreras went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run and two runs scored in Wednesday's 6-4 loss to the Braves.

Contreras hit a two-run shot in the sixth inning that put the Cubs up 3-2, though their bullpen would squander the lead a few innings later. The Chicago catcher had a disappointing 10 home runs and 54 RBI in 2018, but he's off to a solid start with a .429/.556/.786 line through five games in what could be a bounceback season.

Vazquez is not in Wednesday's lineup against the A's, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

After starting five of the first six games and entering the other game off the bench, Vazquez gets a well-deserved rest. Blake Swihart will catch and hit eighth in his place.

Barnes is back in the lineup, catching and hitting eighth for Wednesday's tilt against the Giants, Mike Giovanna of The Los Angeles Times reports.

Barnes yielded catching duties to Russell Martin on Tuesday, but he'll return the lineup for this contest. He's been splitting duties fairly evenly with Martin to start the season.

Pentecost has retired from professional baseball, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

The No. 11 overall pick in 2014, Pentecost's career was derailed by a number of injuries, and that lost developmental time resulted in poor performance in 2018 at Double-A. He is 26 years old and played in 260 minor-league games.