MLB Player News

Murphy was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque on Tuesday, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Murphy has received brief callups in each of the past three seasons, but he has yet to establish himself at the big-league level. He was beat out for the backup role by Tony Wolters again this season. An injury to Wolters or starter Chris Iannetta would bring Murphy back to the big leagues, and while Coors Field makes him a better fantasy option than other backup catchers, he hasn't done much in his 44 major-league games thus far in his career, hitting just .214. He does at least provide a bit of pop (eight career major-league homers).

McCann went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, his first this spring, in Monday's Grapefruit League tie with the Rays.

With J.D. Martinez no longer in town, the Tigers would like to see McCann take a step forward this season in terms of power and run production. The 27-year-old posted a career best 13 home runs and 49 RBI last season in 352 at-bats, and with better lineup placement and possibly more opportunities in 2018, he could exceed those marks if he stays healthy.

Rupp was released by the Phillies on Monday, Stephen Gross of the Morning Call reports.

Rupp had been an adequate but unremarkable catcher for the Phillies over parts of the last five seasons, hitting .234/.298/.407 in 296 games. It's enough to make him worthy of another major-league job, but it wasn't enough for the Phillies to keep him on their major-league roster over their pair of younger, more promising catchers, Jorge Alfaro and Andrew Knapp. Rupp has a good shot at landing on a major-league roster, though his fantasy value will depend on the quality of the catcher he ends up competing with. If he falls into a decent amount of playing time, he should provide a bit of power to offset his low batting average, as he hit 14 homers in 88 games last season.

Narvaez will open the season as the backup to primary catcher Welington Castillo, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Narvaez was expected to compete with Kevan Smith for the role in spring training, but the job battle effectively ended last week when Smith sprained his ankle to take himself out of the running. The two backstops were stuck in a timeshare for much of the past season that resulted in Narvaez netting only 295 plate appearances. Narvaez will see his playing time dip further in 2018 if Castillo avoids the lower-body issues that nagged him throughout his time in Baltimore last season.

Mesoraco went 12-for-37 (.324 average) with a home run during Cactus League play.

Back to full health after three consecutive injury-plagued seasons, Mesoraco seems to have rediscovered the form at the plate that made him an All-Star in 2014. Tempting as it might be for the Reds to get his bat in the lineup on a regular basis, Mesoraco has proven unable to hold up to a full-time workload, so manager Bryan Price will likely continue to deploy the backstop only a few times per week behind primary starter and reigning National League Gold Glove winner Tucker Barnhart. With that in mind, Mesoraco warrants interest mostly in DFS formats rather than season-long leagues.

The Mariners reassigned Gosewisch to their minor-league camp Sunday, TJ Cotterill of The Tacoma News Tribune reports.

With Gosewisch likely ticketed for Triple-A Tacoma to begin the season, Mike Marjama is slated to open the season as the Mariners' backup catcher behind primary option Mike Zunino. Gosewisch made 11 appearances for the big club in 2017, recording just two hits in 28 at-bats.

The Rays reassigned Casali to their minor-league camp Sunday.

Casali joined the Rays just days earlier on a minor-league deal after being released by the Rangers. Though he won't open the season in the big leagues, Casali will likely be first in line for a promotion to the Rays if one of the team's top two catchers, Wilson Ramos and Jesus Sucre, succumbs to an injury at any point.

The Rays reassigned Moore to their minor-league camp Sunday.

Moore's dismissal means that Jesus Sucre has secured his spot as the No. 2 catcher behind Wilson Ramos. Look for the 33-year-old Moore to open the season at Triple-A Durham.

The Phillies designated Rupp for assignment Sunday, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

It became apparent earlier in the spring that the Phillies intended to proceed with Jorge Alfaro and Andrew Knapp as their two catchers once camp broke, so the team will now remove Rupp from its 40-man roster after failing to find a trade partner for the backstop. The Phillies will still have up to 10 days to try and trade Rupp, but if no deal emerges, he'll likely be exposed to waivers and could be claimed by another club looking to add experienced catching depth to its stable.

Caratini was informed Saturday that he made the Cubs' Opening Day roster, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.

In a surprise move, Caratini will open the season as the Cubs' backup catcher. The 24-year-old backstop was expected to open the season in the minors, but a strong showing in camp (.243/.391/.378 across 46 plate appearances) prompted the Cubs to keep him over veteran Chris Gimenez. The youngster isn't expected to see regular playing time unless Willson Contreras suffers an injury, so it's still possible he'll head back to the minors for some more consistent playing time if necessary.