MLB Player News

Bethancourt will make his first Cactus League pitching appearance Wednesday, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

After lots of work in the offseason to develop him as a pitcher, the right-handed fireballer will finally get to strut his stuff against major league competition. He's also scheduled to DH later in the week, showing that the Padres want to keep all options open for the future, but if his spring debut goes well, Bethancourt could work his way into more consistent bullpen work throughout the season.

Stubbs (shoulder) didn't throw for the third straight day because of discomfort in his shoulder, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

It doesn't seem too serious, but the Astros are playing it safe with the 23-year-old, who is being held out of Grapefruit League games for the time-being. He slashes .304/.391/.469 in 86 games last season between High-A and Double-A, and he'll likely work in the minors again in 2017.

X-rays on Plawecki's left knee came back negative following his departure from Saturday's Grapefruit League game, James Wagner of the New York Times reports.

It appears that Plawecki, who was on the receiving end of a brutal collision Saturday, is fortunately dealing with little more than a contusion and some soreness with the knee, which likely takes a long-term absence off the table. Plawecki will presumably miss at least a few Grapefruit League games while he recovers from the injury, but he appears at limited risk of missing Opening Day.

Plawecki left Saturday's Grapefruit League game after he was upended in a home plate collision with Rafael Bautista.

In a scary moment, Plawecki needed assistance getting off the field after he was knocked off his feet when Bautista slid into home. The initial reports suggest that he suffered a left knee contusion, though he will receive X-rays this afternoon to confirm the severity of the injury. The 25-year-old is competing with Rene Rivera for a backup catching spot this spring.

D'Arnaud went 2-for-2 in Friday's Grapefruit League opener against the Red Sox.

After retooling his swing in the offseason, this was exactly the kind of start d'Arnaud was looking for this spring. He's locked in as the starting catcher to begin 2017, but will need to stay healthy and continue hitting to keep Rene Rivera and Kevin Plawecki from cutting into his playing time.

Jackson will be given a try at catcher this season, Braves general manager John Coppolella said during a Twitter question and answer session.

Coppolella previously has admitted that catcher is a significant area of need for the future, and Jackson's bat hasn't lived up to an outfielder billing. Still, the Mariners' 2014 first-round pick could find new life at the position that made him a strong high school prospect. He'll restart that trek in 2017, likely with Atlanta's High-A Brevard County, and is worth watching or stashing in fantasy dynasty leagues.

Grandal worked on hitting right-handed in the offseason, having fully recovered from knee and shoulder injuries that have hindered his ability to conquer left-handed pitching in recent years, Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register reports.

The switch-hitter, who also adopted a meatless diet this offseason, said he was struggling to "sit back (on his right leg) and turn on it" when he was in the righty box, and after his 2013 knee injury, he hit just one home run in his next 126 at-bats from that side. According to Plunkett, the 28-year-old's launch angle as a right-handed hitter last year was 7.7 degrees, nearly half of the 14.0 he generated as a lefty, and it produced a 53.6 percent groundball rate. Already one of the most intriguing fantasy hitters among catchers, Grandal, who cranked 27 home runs last year, could soar into elite territory if he can refine that part of his plate work, which could help give him a useful batting average (unlike his career .238 mark). He'll be in high demand during the middle rounds of a mixed draft, especially in OBP variations.

Sanchez fouled a ball off his foot Wednesday, but X-rays were negative, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

The Friars' backup catcher likely will rest for a few days before re-entering workouts. He's not set for much fantasy value this year as long as Austin Hedges occupies the starting role.

Narvaez developed a good rapport with several of the White Sox's starters in 2016, something that gives him an edge to claim a roster spot when the team heads north.

Narvaez was decent (.267) in his introduction to the majors, but his presence was felt behind the plate more, a notion reinforced by Carlos Rodon's 3.45 ERA in 12 starts with Narvaez as his battery mate. If the future ace of the staff is comfortable throwing to Narvaez, you can bet he'll have a spot on the 25-man roster. Unfortunately for fantasy players, there's little in Narvaez's minor-league profile to suggest he'll be anything more than a .250-hitter with little pop.

Rupp played through much of last season with an undisclosed arm injury, Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

The injury didn't seem to impact Rupp at the plate as his .447 slugging percentage put him among the top catchers in baseball. It did hurt his ability to slow down the run game, however, as he threw out just 27 percent of possible base stealers after averaging 38 percent his previous two seasons. The Phillies want to see Rupp improve on his game calling and pitch framing this season after he struggled in both areas last year. Phillies' bullpen coach John McLaren, who also works with the catchers, said Rupp needs to improve his focus during games. It will be important for Rupp to further develop defensively this season with top prospect Jorge Alfaro in Triple-A Lehigh Valley this year. He could start pushing for Rupp's job as soon as midseason if he gets off to a strong start in the minors.