MLB Player News

Hedges (concussion) will catch five innings in an Arizona Rookie League game Saturday, Bill Center of MLB.com reports.

Hedges cleared all concussion tests a while back, but lingering effects of the foul ball that hit him in the catcher's mask stuck around to keep him on the shelf longer. It seems like he's nearing a return, however, and if all goes well Saturday, he could slot back into the Padres' lineup for Sunday's series finale.

Sanchez is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Mets.

Sanchez will take a seat for the second consecutive game while Luis Torrens makes another start behind the plate. Although Sanchez has been hitting the ball well since the All-Star break, manager Andy Green elected to give Torrens another opportunity after hitting a three-RBI triple during Wednesday's victory.

Stubbs, 24, is batting .237/.325/.340 with four home runs, 24 RBI and eight steals through 68 games for Double-A Corpus Christi.

Stubbs hit .304 last year, so 2017 has clearly been a disappointment in terms of his batting average, even as he has accumulated almost as many walks as strikeouts. His home runs and steals are down as well, though he does have double-digit potential in both areas.

Mesoraco is not in the lineup Thursday against Miami, MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reports.

Mesoraco heads to the bench after playing the past three days, while Tucker Barnhart draws another start behind the plate. Since returning from the DL (back) on July 19, Mesoraco is 2-for-17 with three walks and six strikeouts.

Narvaez is not in the lineup Thursday against the Cubs.

Narvaez has nine hits in his past 26 at-bats (.346), and although he seems to have climbed above Kevan Smith on the catching depth chart, the 25-year-old will head to the bench for a night off. Smith will assume catching duties for the evening.

Manager Ned Yost reaffirmed Wednesday that Perez's rib tightness is "nothing major," adding that the catcher is feeling "much better" and will return to the lineup Friday against Boston, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Perez left Tuesday's game in the fifth inning after experiencing tightness following an at-bat. He was not in the lineup Wednesday, but Yost said that was only precautionary. Cam Gallagher was brought up from Triple-A Omaha to replace Perez on Wednesday, but the former is likely headed back before Friday's game.

Gomes is out of the lineup Thursday against the Angels.

It appears to be a regular day off for Gomes, who was behind the plate for the first two games of the series. Roberto Perez will get the call in his place for the afternoon matchup.

Maldonado is out of the lineup Thursday agains the Indians.

Maldonado is coming off 10 consecutive starts -- his longest such stretch of the season. Over that period since the All-Star break, his bat has cooled off a little bit, as he's hitting .182 with nine strikeouts. He does have two long balls, though, so there's no reason for fantasy owners to panic. Juan Graterol will pick up a rare start in his stead for the series finale.

Realmuto went 3-for-6 with a two-run homer, three RBI and three runs during Wednesday's win over the Rangers.

Realmuto is turning in another strong fantasy campaign with a .307/.367/.484 slash line, 11 homers, 42 RBI and 44 runs. He's started 81 games, so his workload is another fantasy boost and has helped him climb the catcher ranks. Realmuto should be viewed as a high-end backstop moving forward.

Rupp hit a pair of solo homers over four at-bats in Wednesday's 9-0 win over Houston.

He's been providing plenty of thunder when given the chance lately -- over his last seven starts, Rupp has gone 9-for-23 (.391) with four homers, three doubles, eight RBI and six runs. Unfortunately, that production has been spread out over more than two weeks; Rupp's limited playing time means that even this outburst only makes him ownable in NL-only and two-catcher formats.