Kirk went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run and two walks Monday in a 6-5 loss to the Dodgers in Game 3 of the World Series.

Kirk came through in the top of the fourth inning by hammering a three-run home run off of Tyler Glasnow to put the Blue Jays up by a run. Kirk also delivered a perfect strike to mow down Shohei Ohtani in the bottom of the ninth inning on an attempt to steal second base, which would have moved the winning run into scoring position. Kirk is putting together a strong series thus far, now 5-for-10 with a pair of home runs, six RBI and four runs scored.

Delay and the Red Sox agreed on a minor-league contract Sunday, Aram Leighton of JustBaseball.com reports.

Delay with join the Red Sox organization after spending the majority of the 2025 season with Triple-A Gwinnett, batting .219 with eight doubles, 12 RBI and 13 runs scored over 192 at-bats in 59 games. The catcher last appeared in the big leagues in 2024 while with the Pirates, and he'll look to impress with Boston in an attempt to get another crack at the major-league level in 2026.

Smith went 2-for-4 with a home run and three total RBI in a 5-1 victory over Toronto in Game 2 of the World Series on Saturday.

Smith drove in over half of the Dodgers' runs to help his team tie the series. His first RBI came on a two-out single in the first inning, and the All-Star catcher then stopped Kevin Gausman's run of retiring 17 straight batters with a solo blast in the seventh to unknot a 1-1 stalemate. Smith also plated the final run of the contest with a fielder's choice groundout in the eighth frame. Through two World Series games, he's gone 3-for-7 with a walk and four RBI.

Contreras will visit a hand specialist next week to determine whether he needs surgery to repair a fractured left middle finger, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Contreras was diagnosed with a fractured finger back in early May but played through the injury for most of the season. It likely contributed to a relatively disappointing offensive season, as Contreras finished with a .260/.355/.399 batting line with 17 home runs. If he does wind up undergoing surgery, Contreras' availability for the beginning of spring training should not be affected.

Maldonado announced his retirement from baseball via his personal Instagram account Saturday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Maldonado first saw major-league action in 2011 with Milwaukee and proceeded to play the next 15 years in the big leagues with the Angels, Astros, Cubs, Royals, White Sox and Padres. He won a Gold Glove in 2017 with the Angels and played a key role with the Astros during their World Series run in 2022. Maldonado will hang up his cleats and end his career with a .203/.277/.343 slash line with 119 home runs and 384 RBI across 1,231 regular-season games in the majors.

Nido elected to become a free agent Wednesday, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

After accepting an outright assignment from the Tigers in May, Nido has now exercised his right to free agency. The defensive-minded catcher is a career .215/.249/.310 hitter over parts of nine big-league seasons and will look to land a minor-league contract this winter.

Kirk went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run and an additional run scored during Wednesday's 13-4 win over the Mariners in Game 3 of the ALCS.

Kirk's homer off Caleb Ferguson in the eighth inning extended Toronto's lead to 12-2, putting an exclamation point on what was already shaping up to be a convincing road win for the Jays. Three of the 26-year-old backstop's seven postseason hits have flown over the outfield fence, helping to give him a cool .586 slugging percentage through seven games.

Hedges signed a one-year, $4 million contract with the Guardians on Tuesday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

Hedges slashed just .161/.250/.277 with 10 RBI and 13 runs scored across 180 plate appearances in the regular season. However, the 33-year-old is great defensively behind the plate, so Cleveland will keep him around for another year to serve as a backup behind Bo Naylor.

Rushing is not on the Dodgers' NLCS roster, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Rushing was on the wild-card and NLDS rosters and struck out as a pinch hitter in his lone plate appearance. With Will Smith fully recovered from his fractured hand and no longer under any workload restrictions, the team no longer has a need for a third catcher. Ben Rortvedt will back up Smith, and reliever Ben Casparius has taken Rushing's spot on the roster.

Raleigh went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 3-1 win over the Blue Jays in Game 1 of the ALCS.

Raleigh singled in the first inning before he was able to take Kevin Gausman deep in the top of the sixth for a solo shot, knotting the game up at 1-1. The catcher is now batting .400 with two home runs, five RBI and three runs scored over 25 at-bats in six games so far in the playoffs.