MLB Player News

Bart will start at catcher and bat cleanup Thursday against the Brewers.

Bart has been included in the lineup in four of the past six games and appears to have surpassed Henry Davis on the depth chart at catcher. The eventual return of Yasmani Grandal (foot) from the 10-day injured list could cost Bart some playing time, but for now, the 27-year-old should garner the lion's share of starts behind the dish while he's swinging a hot bat. Bart heads into Thursday's game with a 1.119 OPS over 23 plate appearances on the season.

Davis is out of the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Brewers.

He has now started just two of the previous six games and will give way to Joey Bart behind the dish Thursday. Davis is slashing just .180/.288/.230 with a 31.1 percent strikeout rate this season, and with Yasmani Grandal (foot) nearing a return, he could find himself back in the minors soon.

Stephenson is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Phillies.

Stephenson will get a well-deserved breather for Thursday's day game after he started in each of Cincinnati's last seven games, with six of those starts coming behind the plate. Luke Maile will get the nod at catcher Thursday and form a battery with starting pitcher Nick Martinez.

Naylor is out of the lineup for Thursday's contest versus the Red Sox.

Naylor started each of the previous three games at catcher for the Guardians, but he'll be given some rest for the Thursday afternoon tilt. David Fry will draw the start at catcher for Cleveland.

Maldonado is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Twins.

Maldonado finds himself on the bench for a second straight day, ending a stretch of eight consecutive contests in which he and Korey Lee alternated turns behind the dish. With the White Sox sitting on a 3-21 record and the 37-year-old Maldonado having recorded just two hits in 42 at-bats on the season, it's possible that the organization will begin to start phasing him out to open up more opportunities for the 25-year-old Lee.

Diaz went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in a loss to the Padres on Wednesday.

Diaz accounted for half of the Rockies' runs in the contest with his solo shot to center field in the eighth inning. The blast snapped a 19-game homerless drought for the backstop, who belted 14 long balls last season. Despite the modest power output thus far, Diaz has had a nice start to the campaign with a .312/.357/.429 slash line and 11 RBI.

Lee went 1-for-2 with a solo home run during Wednesday's 6-3 loss to the Twins.

Lee reached safely in two of his three plate appearances Wednesday, tagging Joe Ryan for a solo home run in the third inning and working a walk in the fifth. He stole second after the free pass, marking his first-career steal in the big leagues. After batting .077 and .160 over small samples in 2023 and 2022, respectively, Lee is off to a much better start to 2024, slashing .256/.310/.462 with five RBI and five runs scored.

Wong went 4-for-4 with a pair of homers and three total RBI in Wednesday's 8-0 victory over the Guardians.

It's the second two-homer game of Wong's career while his four hits matched a personal best. The 27-year-old catcher has been on fire lately, going 13-for-31 with four home runs in his last eight games while taking over the primary catching job in Boston. Wong's now slashing a solid .320/.327/.520 with three home runs (six shy of a career high), eight RBI and five runs scored across 51 plate appearances to open the campaign.

Murphy (oblique) was able to catch bullpen sessions Tuesday and Wednesday but has yet to resume swinging a bat, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Murphy's ability to throw at full strength while donning his full catching equipment represents a positive step forward in his recovery from a Grade 1 left oblique strain, but until he starts swinging the bat again, his return from the 10-day injured list shouldn't be viewed as imminent. The backstop has been on the shelf since March 30 with the injury.

Amaya is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Astros.

Though he'll give way to Yan Gomes behind the dish Wednesday, Amaya seems to have edged ahead of the veteran on the depth chart at catcher. Amaya started in four of the previous five games and owns a 302-point edge in OPS over Gomes for the season (.772 to .470).