MLB Player News

MLB.com reports Yankees manager Joe Girardi hasn't decided who his opening-day catcher will be between Francisco Cervelli or Chris Stewart, but he appears happy with the tandem as spring training winds down. 

"I think these guys have played pretty well in camp. They've done a nice job with our staff," Girardi said. "Coming into camp, I think there were some questions about Cervy a little bit about throwing, because he had struggled in the past, but we had seen him really good when he first came up. I think he's back to that level again."

Girardi also hasn't figured out how he will split up playing time between the two catchers.

"It can work out pretty well, actually," Girardi said. "You can do it that way, keep them fresh, they know when they're playing. I think that's the big thing if you can sort it out as soon as you can, so they have a plan of when they're playing. I think that's important."

Giants catcher Hector Sanchez was scratched from Thursday's spring lineup becuase of a sore shoulder. Sanchez, who is expected to be Buster Posey's backup, has been limited to 21 innings this spring because of shoulder and calf injuries.

The Nationals made their second round of cuts Thursday, starting with optioning outfielder Eury Perez to Triple-A Syracuse. They also sent Nathan Karns, Sandy Leon and Anthony Rendon to Double-A Harrisburg, while reassigningPatrick McCoy, Will Rhymes and Matt Skole to minor-league camp.

The Indians optioned Tim Fedroff, Trey Haley, T.J. House, Chen-Chang Lee and Danny Salazar to Triple-A Columbus Monday. The team also reassigned Fernando Nieve and Roberto Perez to minor-league camp.

The San Diego Padres continued shaping their roster during spring training Saturday and assigned the following players to their minor-league camp: catcher Austin Hedges and starting pitcher Jose De Paula.

Mets catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud left in the fifth inning of Friday's Grapefruit League contest against Detroit after being hit with a pitch just below his right elbow, ESPN.com reports. d'Arnaud, considered one of the top 10 prospects in the minors by several publications, said he was removed as a precaution. "It got enough meat to where I'll be fine -- just let it heal, relax for today," he said. "Fortunately it wasn't a couple of inches higher or lower."

Yankees catcher Chris Stewart went 1 for 2 with his first home run of the spring during New York's 10-3 victory over Detroit in Grapefruit League play Saturday. Stewart, who is locked in a tight competition with Francisco Cervelli for the starting job behind the plate, drilled a two-run homer in the fourth inning. But the 31-year-old, who has just four career homers, remained modest about his power production. "That's not my goal," Stewart told MLB.com. "My goal is to help the team win any way I can, and I think I can do that better behind the plate right now. I happened to get a good pitch, put a good swing on it and it went out. That's not what I'm going to try to do."

San Francisco catcher Hector Sanchez was in the lineup on Wednesday in a Cactus League game against the Angels. Sanchez, who was nursing a right shoulder injury earlier in camp, was the designated hitter against the Angels and went 1 for 4 with an RBI and double. He's batting .333 on the spring season. Sanchez has been unable to throw and that could be why he was the DH on Wednesday.

Padres catcher Yasmani Grandal was slowed in camp after dealing with two inflamed tendons on the middle finger of his left hand during the offseason. He showed no signs of the injury in Tuesday's Cactus League game against the Reds as he went 1 for 3 with an RBI and a run scored in the 7-5 win. Grandal has gone 2 for 4 (.500) with two RBI and a walk through two spring games. "I know I'm not going to catch too often, and I have to take advantage of the time I get," Grandal said. "I've been doing workouts, but nothing can simulate a game. That's especially true for a catcher. From an offensive standpoint, it was nice to drive a run home and continue to work on my timing."

The San Francisco Chronicle reported Saturday that Giants backup catcher Hector Sanchez is dealing with a right shoulder injury and does not know when he'll be able to start playing in Cactus League games. According to the report, he sustained the injury while playing winter ball in Venezuela. The injury has kept Sanchez from throwing, but he has still been able to take part in batting practice. He is listed as day to day.