MLB Player News

Smith went 4-for-6 with a double, a run and two RBI in Thursday's loss to the Padres in the second game of the Seoul Series.

After the Padres went ahead 5-0 in the top of the first inning, Smith put the Dodgers on the board with an RBI double in the bottom of the frame. He collected three singles the rest of the way -- including an RBI base knock in the seventh -- as he and Mookie Betts combined for half of the Dodgers' 16 total hits. Smith went 5-for-10 over the two-game, season-opening set in South Korea and appears to be fully recovered from the back issue that caused him to be scratched from Los Angeles' final Cactus League game March 13.

Murphy went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays.

The catcher took Bowden Francis deep in the sixth inning for his first long ball of the spring. Murphy has been making good contact in camp despite the lack of power, batting .292 (7-for-24) through nine Grapefruit League games with a 0:3 BB:K, and he seems just about ready for Opening Day.

The Tigers reassigned Bemboom to minor-league camp Thursday.

Bemboom was in camp as another catcher to throw to, but he wasn't going to make the roster as long as Jake Rogers and Carson Kelly were healthy. The 34-year-old will provide some experienced depth at Toledo.

Gallagher (knee) has appeared in each of the Phillies' last three Grapefruit League games, going a collective 1-for-4 with an RBI.

Gallagher was scratched from the Phillies' lineup ahead of last Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins due to a right knee contusion, but he needed only a few days to move past the issue. The 31-year-old is battling Garrett Stubbs for the Phillies' No. 2 catcher job this spring.

Carson Kelly is expected to play often this season, per Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, which could cut into Rogers' role.

Rogers should still see the majority of the playing time behind the plate after clubbing 21 home runs a season ago, but he may be at risk of sitting fairly regularly, especially if Kelly plays well. Even in something of a timeshare, Rogers offers fantasy upside due to his power potential, though he's unlikely to contribute much in the batting average category given his free-swinging approach.

The White Sox optioned Lee to Triple-A Charlotte on Wednesday.

The 25-year-old hit well during spring training with a 1.280 OPS in 26 plate appearances, but veterans Martin Maldonado and Max Stassi will begin the campaign as Chicago's two big-league catchers. Lee struggled to a .077/.143/.138 slash line in his first 24 MLB games last season but should receive another look with the big club at some point in 2024.

McCann has an opportunity secure the No. 2 catcher job behind Shea Langeliers in the wake of Tyler Soderstrom's demotion to Triple-A Las Vegas, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

McCann was a fourth-round pick in the 2019 First-Year Player Draft, and he's steadily ascended in the organizational ranks since that point. The 26-year-old spent the entirety of the 2023 season with Las Vegas, producing a solid .270/.351/.474 slash line with 35 extra-base hits and 57 RBI across 97 games. McCann hasn't been anywhere near as successful this spring -- he sports a .211 average across 23 Cactus League plate appearances -- but manager Mark Kotsay implies McCann remains in contention with veteran Carlos Perez for the No. 2 job and has complimented McCann for "continuing to grow and make improvements to challenge for that opportunity."

Perez's chances of securing the No. 2 catcher job have increased significantly with the recent demotion of Tyler Soderstrom to Triple-A Las Vegas to start the season, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

The veteran returned to Oakland on a minor-league contract with an invite to spring training on Jan. 5 after serving as Shea Langeliers' backup for the majority of the 2023 season. Perez made some serviceable offensive contributions in the process, generating a career-high six home runs and .650 OPS across 68 games. However, Perez has only posted a .111 average over 30 Cactus League plate appearances, and he still has to beat out Kyle McCann, a fourth-round pick in the 2019 First-Year Player Draft who hit well at Triple-A last season.

Kelly is expected to receive a significant amount of playing time at catcher for the Tigers this season, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

Kelly may not be part of a full-on timeshare with Jake Rogers, but the veteran backstop has impressed the club this spring after making offseason swing changes. The 29-year-old cranked his second Grapefruit League home run Wednesday and is currently sitting on an .897 OPS in 12 games. Kelly has slashed just .210/.281/.320 over the last two seasons but had a .768 OPS in the three seasons prior to that.

Sabol (groin) will return to action Wednesday for the Giants' Cactus League contest against the Angels, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Sabol is not in the lineup but will come off the bench and play some left field. It will be the 26-year-old's first game appearance since March 5, as he's been plagued by a right adductor strain. Sabol should be ready in time for Opening Day but appears ticketed for Triple-A Sacramento to start the season.