MLB Player News

The Guardians promoted Velazquez from Single-A Lynchburg to High-A Lake County on Monday.

Though the Guardians have seemingly closed the door on developing Velazquez as a catcher, the 19-year-old has cemented himself as one of the organization's top position prospects thanks to the slugging potential he brings as a first baseman. He put that power on display during his time with Lynchburg, notching 31 extra-base hits over 375 plate appearances while also keeping his strikeout rate (20 percent) in check. Velazquez will get a tougher test as he makes the move to the Midwest League, where he'll once again be one of the youngest hitters on the circuit.

Herrera is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Rockies.

Herrera is on the bench for the second day in a row while the Diamondbacks hand another start at catcher to rookie Adrian Del Castillo, who has opened his big-league career by going 7-for-12 with three extra-base hits over his first three games. Even while Gabriel Moreno (adductor) is out indefinitely, Herrera looks like he could remain the Diamondbacks' No. 2 catcher, especially while Del Castillo is wielding a hot bat.

Del Castillo will start at catcher and bat sixth in Monday's game against the Rockies.

Del Castillo has opened his big-league career on a high note, going 7-for-12 with a home run, two doubles, one walk, five RBI and two runs through his first three games in the majors following his promotion from Triple-A Reno last Tuesday. The lefty-hitting Del Castillo could occupy the strong side of a platoon at catcher with the switch-hitting Jose Herrera while top backstop Gabriel Moreno (adductor) is on the injured list.

Fermin is absent from the lineup for Monday's game in Minnesota.

The Royals will go with Salvador Perez at catcher and Michael Massey at designated hitter for their series opener against the Twins. Fermin has gone just 3-for-20 at the plate across his last five games.

Rortvedt is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Astros, Steve Carney of StPeteNine.com reports.

As is often the case, the lefty-hitting Rortvedt will retreat to the bench while the opposition sends a lefty (Framber Valdez) to the hill. Alex Jackson will fill in for Rortvedt behind the plate.

Naylor is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Cubs.

With southpaw Shota Imanaga taking the hill for the Cubs, the lefty-hitting Naylor will retreat to the bench in the series opener. Austin Hedges will fill in for Naylor behind the dish.

Kelly went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and an additional run scored during Sunday's 8-7 loss to the Yankees.

Kelly started the final two games of the series and was productive in both contests, going 4-for-8 with a walk, a homer, four RBI and three runs. The 30-year-old was acquired ahead of the trade deadline and was expected to serve as the primary backup to starting catcher Jonah Heim, but Kelly has started five of Texas' 10 games since being acquired. Kelly has a .738 OPS for the season and has gone 6-for-17 with the Rangers, which is significantly more productive than Heim's .619 OPS this year. Kelly could continue carving out a larger share of the playing time if those offensive trends continue.

Thaiss went 2-for-2 with three walks and a stolen base in a 6-4 win over Washington on Sunday.

Thaiss got the start behind the plate with Logan O'Hoppe getting a rest day. The former made the most of the opportunity, setting a season high with three walks and notching his sixth multi-hit game of the campaign. O'Hoppe is firmly entrenched as the Angels' primary catcher, but Thaiss has been hitting well since the start of July despite limited playing time, slashing .333/.439/.394 with six RBI, three stolen bases and a 7:8 BB:K over 10 games. The strong stretch could see him get more at-bats at DH, as he did Saturday against the Nationals.

Raleigh went 3-for-5 with two homers, a walk and five RBI in Sunday's win over the Mets.

Raleigh opened the game up with a two-run blast in the fourth off Luis Severino to make it a 4-0 lead for the Mariners. He then completely put the game out of reach with a three-run homer against Adam Ottavino in the sixth. Both home runs came on the first pitch of his respective at-bats. Raleigh has now reached 25-plus home runs in three straight seasons and is the first catcher to do that since Mike Piazza had eight consecutive seasons from 1995-2002. Following Sunday's performance, Raleigh now leads all catchers with a 3.6 fWAR. For the year, Raleigh is slashing .217/.310/.448 with 26 homers, 76 RBI, 52 runs and a 50:134 BB:K in 449 plate appearances.

Stephenson went 2-for-3 with a solo home run during Sunday's 4-3 win over the Brewers.

Stephenson took DL Hall yard for a solo homer with two outs in the fifth inning, putting Cincinnati ahead 3-2. The long ball was Stephenson's fourth in August, and he's batting 10-for-32 (.313) with nine RBI during the month. He's slashing .248/.327/.454 on the year.