MLB Player News

Grandal (groin) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game versus the Giants.

Grandal was removed late in Tuesday's 7-6 win with left groin soreness. He has avoided the injured list for the time being, though the Pirates have added catcher Grant Koch to their taxi squad as protection in case the team needs to move another backstop onto the 26-man active roster. Joey Bart will handle the catching duties Wednesday in Grandal's stead.

Herrera is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.

Herrera caught three innings earlier in the day after the Cardinals resumed Tuesday's suspended game in the bottom of the sixth and emerged with a 3-1 victory, so he'll just be getting some rest in Wednesday's regularly scheduled game. Pedro Pages will get the starting nod behind the dish.

Diaz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Angels.

He'll be getting a breather for the series finale after starting behind the dish Monday and Tuesday while going 3-for-8 with a pair of doubles, two runs and an RBI. Victor Caratini will handle the catching duties Wednesday.

Fermin will start at catcher and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Tigers.

He'll be rewarded with his third start in four games after going 4-for-7 with a walk, an RBI and two runs between his previous two turns behind the plate. The Royals will likely continue to make room for Fermin in the lineup when the team opposes left-handed pitching, but his opportunities against right-handers will likely remain more limited while top backstop Salvador Perez is healthy.

O'Hoppe is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game in Houston, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

The Angels' top catcher will get a routine day off as the Angels and Astros wrap up their series with a game that begins at 2:10 p.m. ET. Matt Thaiss will start behind the plate Wednesday while O'Hoppe receives some rest.

The Mets are aiming for Alvarez (thumb) to begin taking batting practice during their upcoming homestand, which begins Friday and runs through June 2, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

It's been a month since Alvarez had surgery to address a torn UCL in his left thumb, and he's almost ready to pick up a bat as he advances his rehab. The catcher remains on track to return from the 10-day injured list in mid-to-late June.

Kelly is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.

Kelly had started behind the dish in three of the past four games, but he'll give way to Jake Rogers as the Tigers and Royals wrap up their series with a day game after a night game. Rogers appeared to have supplanted Kelly as the top option behind the plate toward the end of April, but playing time between the two backstops has been more equitable in May, with Kelly having thus far garnered 10 starts at catcher to Rogers' nine on the month.

Ruiz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's contest against the Twins, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

The Nationals and Twins are concluding their three-game series with an afternoon game Wednesday, so Washington will give backup catcher Riley Adams a start behind the dish. Ruiz is sporting a disappointing .434 OPS this season for Washington.

Murphy (oblique) played seven innings at catcher and went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and an additional run Tuesday in his first rehab game for Triple-A Gwinnett.

In his first game since suffering a Grade 1 left oblique strain in his season debut with Atlanta on March 29, Murphy had been scheduled to catch just four innings, but he ended up staying behind the dish longer than expected. The 29-year-old backstop didn't exhibit any rust with the bat or in the field Tuesday, as he threw out the only baserunner that attempt to steal off of him and provided the highlight of the night with a 449-foot blast off the batter's eye in center field in his first at-bat. According to David O'Brien of The Athletic, Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said that Murphy will be off Wednesday before starting behind the plate again for Gwinnett on Thursday. Snitker added that Murphy is also expected to get another start for Gwinnett as a designated hitter, so Atlanta is seemingly planning on having Murphy remain on assignment through at least Friday before bringing him back from the 10-day injured list.

Naylor is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Mets.

Naylor started behind the dish in the first two games of the series, so he's likely just getting a breather as the Guardians and Mets wrap up their three-game set with an afternoon matchup. Austin Hedges will handle the catching duties for Cleveland.