MLB Player News

Escarra has a "stranglehold" on the Yankees' backup catcher job behind starter Austin Wells, Jack Curry of YES Network reports.

Escarra has crushed the ball this spring, sporting a 1.032 OPS with three home runs in 14 Grapefruit League contests. The 29-year-old is on the 40-man roster but will be making his major-league debut when he gets into a game. Ben Rice will also be on the Opening Day roster and is capable of catching, but he's likely to focus mostly on designated hitter duties.

Hedges started at designated hitter and went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Monday's Cactus League game against Cincinnati.

The Guardians put out what looked like a normal regular-season lineup, except for Hedges. His main role is as a backup catcher, and he doesn't hit well enough to be a viable DH. At any rate, it was the second Cactus League home run for Hedges, who is batting .133 (11-for-30) with three extra-base hits and three RBI this spring.

Lee has gone 10-for-25 with four extra-base hits in Cactus League games.

Lee has a 49 wRC+ across 490 big-league plate appearances, so success across a small sample in relatively meaningless games isn't all that reassuring. However, he appears likely to enter the regular season as Chicago's primary catcher and his performance this spring could buy him some additional time over top prospects Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero.

McCann agreed to a minor-league contract with Atlanta on Monday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

McCann will catch on with Atlanta after he spent 2024 in Baltimore, batting .234 with eight home runs, 31 RBI, 27 runs scored and one stolen base over 233 plate appearances during the regular season. Drake Baldwin and Chadwick Tromp had been expected to open the season as Atlanta's catching tandem while Sean Murphy recovers from a fractured rib, but McCann could get one of the two spots if Atlanta prefers to have a backstop on the roster with more MLB experience.

Rice went 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays.

Rice has homered in back-to-back games as he continues to build his case for a spot on the club's Opening Day roster. He slotted in behind the dish Monday after serving as the designated hitter Sunday, putting his versatility on full display. Rice would likely get looks at first base, catcher and in the DH spot if he were to make the big-league club out of camp.

Trevino (hand) will serve behind home plate and bat eighth in Monday's spring game against the Guardians.

Trevino's was injured in Friday's Cactus League game against the Diamondbacks after a foul tip off Corbin Carroll's bat struck him in his right hand. Trevino underwent CT scans Saturday, which came back negative, and the 31-year-old will serve as the Reds' catcher Monday. Trevino is expected to see significant playing time at the start of the 2025 campaign due to Tyler Stephenson (oblique) opening the regular season on the 10-day injured list.

The Cardinals reassigned Sisco to minor-league camp Sunday.

Sisco has appeared in parts of five seasons in the majors, but he hasn't seen big-league action since 2021. He'll likely serve as organizational catching depth for St. Louis in the upper levels of the minors in 2025.

The White Sox reassigned Quero to minor-league camp Monday.

Quero went just 4-for-16 with a walk over nine Cactus League games, but even if he had obliterated pitching in the spring, the White Sox still might have had him open the season at Triple-A Charlotte to delay the start of his MLB service clock. Korey Lee appears to be the leading candidate to begin the season as Chicago's No. 1 backstop, but it may just be a matter of time before Quero or fellow catching prospect Kyle Teel supplants him. In the meantime, Quero and Teel are likely to begin the season at Triple-a Charlotte, where both should be able to pick up everyday at-bats while rotating between catcher and designated hitter.

The White Sox reassigned Teel to minor-league camp Monday.

Though Teel and Edgar Quero are two of the more highly regarded catching prospects not just in the White Sox organization but in all of baseball, the duo will likely split time behind the plate and at designated hitter at Triple-A Charlotte to begin the season before making their respective MLB debuts later on in 2025. The White Sox appear set to proceed with Korey Lee as their No. 1 catcher, but after he posted a .591 OPS over 394 plate appearances in 2024, he likely won't be tough to dislodge atop the depth chart once the organization is confident Teel and/or Quero are big-league ready. As a member of the Red Sox organization last season, Teel slashed .288/.386/.433 with 13 home runs and 12 steals over 112 games at the Double-A and Triple-A levels.

Atlanta reassigned Leon to minor-league camp Monday.

Leon's dismissal leaves Atlanta with just two healthy backstops in big-league camp: Drake Baldwin and Chadwick Tromp. Barring an addition from outside the organization, the two will begin the season as Atlanta's catching tandem until Sean Murphy (rib) is ready to make his 2025 debut. Leon is likely to open the campaign as organizational catching depth at Triple-A Gwinnett.