MLB Player News

Knizner went 1-for-1 with a grand slam and two total runs in Monday's 18-1 rout of Milwaukee.

Knizner began the game on the bench, but he came in to pinch run for Paul Goldschmidt with St. Louis up by eight runs in the eighth inning. He came around to score when Nolan Gorman homered four pitches later, and Knizner then got a turn at the plate when St. Louis batted around to get back to Goldschmidt's original spot. Knizner delivered a grand slam off position player Mike Brosseau, putting the icing on a huge 10-run frame. It was the second straight game with a homer for Knizner, who went deep just once over his first 56 at-bats of the season. Though Knizner has been swinging a hot bat of late and recently completed a streak of nine consecutive starts, his playing time is expected to take a hit moving forward with the Cardinals having recommitted to Willson Contreras as their primary catcher.

Raleigh went 3-for-5 with two home runs, three total runs and four total RBI in Monday's 10-1 rout of the Red Sox.

After the two teams played to a scoreless draw through four innings, Raleigh broke the tie with a mammoth 438-foot two-run shot off righty Tanner Houck. The switch hitter then flipped to the other side of the plate against southpaw Brennan Bernardino in the sixth and hit another two-run shot, this time a 434-footer. In doing so, Raleigh became the first catcher ever to homer from both sides of the plate at Fenway Park, per Jon Morosi of MLB Network. The backstop is up to seven long balls and 22 RBI on the campaign after belting 27 homers and driving in 63 runs in his first full MLB campaign last season.

Barnhart remains out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Astros.

Barnhart had already been occupying the smaller side of a timeshare at catcher with Miguel Amaya early last week, but the former has seen his playing-time outlook become worse with the return of Yan Gomes (concussion) from the 7-day injured list. Even with Amaya now back in the minors, Barnhart has now sat out five times in the Cubs' last six games.

Knizner is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Brewers.

With Willson Contreras back behind the plate Monday for the first time since May 4, Knizner will retreat to the bench, ending a stretch of nine consecutive starts for the 28-year-old backstop. Despite Contreras' struggles with adapting to the St. Louis pitching staff in his first season with the team, the Cardinals have seemingly reaffirmed their commitment to him as their primary catcher. With that in mind, Knizner is expected to see his playing time take a big hit, even though he held his own defensively and at the plate (.281 average, six extra-base hits) during his nine-game starting run.

Contreras is starting at catcher and batting fifth Monday versus the Brewers, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.

As expected, Contreras is starting at catcher for the first time since May 4 following a run at designated hitter while the team asked him to work on his defense. He'll be tasked with helping to coax better results out of right-hander Jack Flaherty, who brings a 6.18 ERA into his start Monday.

Trevino is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Blue Jays.

Trevino will give way to Kyle Higashioka, who is catching for starting pitcher Jimmy Cordero in the series opener with Toronto. Over 11 games in May, Trevino has gone 4-for-30 with a home run, five runs and three RBI.

Jansen is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Yankees, Mike Wilner of the Toronto Star reports.

Jansen had started behind the dish in three of the past four games, but he'll cede catching duties to Alejandro Kirk as the Blue Jays open a four-game slate with the Yankees on Monday. Though Kirk earned an All-Star nod in 2022 largely on the basis of his production with the bat, his modest .679 OPS so far this season has resulted in him losing out on some starts to Jansen. While Jansen remains less productive at the plate (.182/.258/.330 slash line in 97 plate appearances), the upgrade he offers on the defensive end should guarantee him at least a part-time role until Kirk starts tapping into more power.

The Angels optioned Okey to Triple-A Salt Lake on Monday.

With Chad Wallach (concussion) back from the 7-day injured list, the Angels no longer had a need for Okey as an extra catcher. The 28-year-old struck out in his only two plate appearances during his brief stint with the big club.

Wallach (concussion) will start at catcher and bat eighth in Monday's game against the Orioles after the Angels reinstated him from the 7-day injured list, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Wallach ended up spending just over the minimum amount of time on the shelf with what was an apparently mild concussion. Though Wallach will get the nod behind the dish in the series opener in Baltimore, the lefty-hitting Matt Thaiss -- who owns a solid .767 OPS on the season -- could end up getting the bulk of the starts at catcher when the Angels face right-handed pitching.

Diaz is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Reds.

Diaz started behind the plate each of the past three days, so he's presumably just getting a routine breather as the Rockies open a three-game series with the Reds. Austin Wynns will catch for starting pitcher Connor Seabold on Monday.