MLB Player News

Realmuto (knee) will catch and bat second Sunday for the Marlins in a Grapefruit League game against the Yankees, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Tomas Telis is scheduled to come on and replace Realmuto behind the plate midway through the contest, but that's standard procedure for spring-training games rather than as a result of any concern the Marlins have about Realmuto's health. The backstop looks to be fine following two days of rest after taking a foul ball off his left knee Thursday.

The Cubs are hoping that Contreras, who has been sidelined since Tuesday with a fever, is able to catch Yu Darvish on Sunday, Carrie Muskat of MLB.com reports.

Contreras had been having a good spring prior to coming down with a fever, going 5-for-14 with a home run through five Cactus League games. The team has exercised caution with its star catcher, but he should be good to go in time for the regular season.

Davis played catch Saturday for the first time since suffering a concussion in batting practice last week, Carrie Muskat of MLB.com reports.

Davis said Wednesday that he felt "like a human being" for the first time since suffering the concussion, and throwing is another good step for the 27-year-old. He will likely be able to return to Cactus League action in the coming days.

Moore will be sidelined for 5-to-6 days after suffering a left thumb injury, Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times reports.

Moore is in big-league camp as a non-roster invitee and is likely to begin the year at the Triple-A level after signing with the organization last month. He should return to game action around the end of next week.

D'Arnaud will see fewer starts against right-handed pitching in 2018, Kristie Ackert of The New York Daily News reports. "With the way our catchers are, the way they hit, we're going be able to cover opposing pitchers pretty good. Obviously d'Arnaud is really good against lefties and I feel like [Kevin] Plawecki hangs in there really good against tough righties," Mets manager Mickey Callaway said Friday. "So I think we'll base who's catching more on that type stuff, (rather) than who (pitchers) prefer to throw to."

While d'Arnaud won't be relegated to the weak side of a full platoon -- his .704 career OPS against RHP is actually better than Plawecki's .628 mark -- Callaway seems to be leaning towards a more even split in playing time behind the plate between his two catchers. Seeing a larger share of his at-bats against lefties will likely improve d'Arnaud's rate stats, and a smaller workload could help keep him healthy. The move would also lead to lower totals in HR and RBI and probably result in an overall blow to his already shaky fantasy value.

Plawecki will earn more starts against right-handed pitching this season, Kristie Ackert of The New York Daily News reports. "With the way our catchers are, the way they hit, we're going be able to cover opposing pitchers pretty good. Obviously [Travis] d'Arnaud is really good against lefties and I feel like Plawecki hangs in there really good against tough righties," Mets manager said Mickey Callaway said Friday. "So I think we'll base who's catching more on that type stuff, (rather) than who (pitchers) prefer to throw to."

This situation likely won't devolve into a full platoon, as Plawecki's career .628 OPS against RHP is actually worse than d'Arnaud's .704 mark, but it sounds like Callaway will use Plawecki's .270/.345/.459 line in 84 plate appearances against righties in 2017 as an excuse to split reps behind the plate more evenly this season. This will do more to hurt d'Arnaud's fantasy value than boost Plawecki's, but the 27-year-old does become marginally more interesting as a bargain option at catcher in deep NL-only formats.

Realmuto will remain sidelined from Friday's spring game after taking a foul ball off his left knee during Thursday's contest, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Realmuto could return to the lineup as soon as Saturday's game against the Phillies, which signals that this is just a minor injury for the 26-year-old. Tommy Telis entered Friday's lineup in his absence.

Mejia (foot) is in the lineup Friday against the Rockies.

Mejia is batting sixth as a designated hitter. He has been out since Tuesday with a foot contusion after getting hit by a pitch. He should be fully recovered by the start of the season, though it's likely that he starts the year with Triple-A Columbus.

Realmuto was scratched from Friday's lineup due to a left knee contusion, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

It's unclear when Realmuto suffered what sounds like a minor injury, but he will sit out the Grapefruit League contest. Tomas Telis will start behind the dish and hit fifth in his place. There had been a lot of trade rumors surrounding Realmuto a few weeks ago, but as nothing developed on that front and teams are in full swing this spring, it would be surprising if he were traded before the start of the season. Look for him to hit in the middle of a very poor Marlins lineup all season. He should be considered day-to-day.

Garver (knee) is 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in two games since returning from injury.

The catching prospect broke out with 17 homers and a .928 OPS at Triple-A Rochester last year. He's been slow out of the gate this spring (1-for-11 with a home run), but hopefully he can get back on track now that he's healthy again. Garver is expected to start the season as Jason Castro's backup behind the plate.