MLB Player News

Murphy went 1-for-3 in Sunday's split-squad game against the Orioles.

The catcher is batting .286 (6-for-21) this spring, but he has just one double and zero homers among those hits. Power production isn't expected to be an issue for Murphy in 2024 after he set career highs with 21 home runs and 68 RBI last season in his first campaign with Atlanta.

Boston optioned Heineman to minor-league camp Monday, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports.

Connor Wong and Reese McGuire will serve as Boston's catching tandem to start the season. Heineman hit .385 with zero home runs during Grapefruit League play.

Smith (back) started at catcher and went 1-for-2 with a two-run double against Team Korea on Monday.

He had recently been scratched from a Cactus League game as a precaution due to back tightness, but since he was able to start this exhibition in South Korea, it seems like it was a minor issue. Smith should play in the Seoul Series against the Padres later this week.

Zavala is hitting just .158 across 23 Cactus League plate appearances, but he's nevertheless predicted to make the Opening Day roster by Daniel Kramer of MLB.com.

The 30-year-old was acquired from the Diamondbacks in a late-November trade to offer some experienced depth at catcher behind Cal Raleigh. The disappointing spring at the plate notwithstanding, Zavala, who holds a career .210 average and .622 OPS over 514 major-league plate appearances, is still slated to spell Raleigh on occasion against right-handed pitching, although Kramer points out the offseason arrival is expected to see less action than Tom Murphy did in that same No. 2 role a season ago.

The Nationals reassigned Lindsly to minor-league camp Sunday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

Lindsly was selected with the 123rd overall pick in the 2020 First-Year Player Draft by the Nationals. The 26-year-old spent time in both Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Rochester in 2023. For Rochester, the catcher slashed .243/.309/.429 with four home runs across 82 plate appearances in 21 games.

Raleigh (heel) started at catcher and went 0-for-3 in a Cactus League loss to the Diamondbacks on Sunday.

Raleigh ended up missing just one game with the heel issue in an absence that had been labeled as precautionary. The slugging backstop retains an impressive .348 average with three home runs and 10 RBI across 10 Cactus League games despite Sunday's blanking.

The Athletics optioned Soderstrom to Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday.

Soderstrom got off to a slow start in spring training, and the struggles continued. The catcher posted a .370 OPS across 34 plate appearances in 14 games. At Triple-A Las Vegas in 2023, the 22-year-old had a .833 OPS. This move points to Carlos Perez opening the season as the backup catcher for Oakland.

The Pirates reassigned Bins to minor-league camp Sunday.

Bins was reassigned to minor-league camp for the second straight spring. The catcher dealt with injuries throughout the 2023 season in the minors and had a few stints on the injured list.

Fortes went 0-for-3 with an RBI in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies.

The 27-year-old catcher hasn't made much impact at the plate this spring, batting .118 (2-for-17) with zero extra-base hits, although he does have a 4:2 BB:K. Fortes is expected to split reps behind the plate with Christian Bethancourt this season, but neither is likely to be an appealing fantasy option.

Raleigh (heel) will start at catcher and bat fifth in Sunday's Cactus League game against the Diamondbacks.

Raleigh was scratched from the lineup ahead of Saturday's game against the White Sox due to a bruised heel, but the extra day off was apparently all the backstop needed to recover from the injury. The 27-year-old carries a .400/.520/1.000 spring slash line over nine Cactus League games into Sunday's contest.