MLB Player News

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

Smith will hit the bench for a second straight game, with Dalton Rushing working behind home plate and batting eighth. The decision to hold Smith out is a deliberate one, with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noting Monday that he wants Smith to be the catcher for Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani for Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. Smith has gone 8-for-29 (.276 average) with two home runs and five RBI to open the season.

Lockridge (hip) is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Red Sox.

Lockridge reportedly sustained a hip injury in Sunday's 8-5 win over the Royals, and though he'll be out of the lineup for the series opener in Boston, he could still be available off the bench. Blake Perkins will draw the start in left field Monday, and he and Lockridge are likely to share time at the position until the Brewers get Jackson Chourio (hand) back from the injured list.

Griffin will start at shortstop and bat eighth in Monday's game against the Padres.

After smacking an RBI double Friday in his first at-bat in the majors, Griffin proceeded to go 0-for-8 with two walks and a hit by pitch in his subsequent 11 plate appearances to close out the Pirates' weekend series versus the Orioles. The 19-year-old phenom isn't in any danger of losing the everyday shortstop job, but the Pirates will drop him a couple spots in the order Monday with hope of taking some pressure off of him.

Mangum is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Padres.

The switch-hitting Mangum has cracked the starting nine in five of the Pirates' first 10 games, with three of those starts coming against left-handed pitching. Mangum should remain a regular presence in the lineup versus southpaws moving forward, but his opportunities to play against righties will likely be more sporadic while all of Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz, Ryan O'Hearn and Marcell Ozuna are available to cover the outfield and designated-hitter spots.

Betts (oblique) said Monday that he already feels "light years ahead of where I thought I was going to be," Sonja Chen of MLB.com reports.

Betts tweaked his right oblique in Saturday's game against the Nationals and landed on the 10-day injured list Sunday. It's an injury type that usually necessitates longer than a minimum stay on the injury list, but Betts' encouraging update Monday suggest he could be back before the end of April. Hyeseong Kim is handling shortstop for the Dodgers on Monday and will continue to get reps at the position while Betts is out, with Miguel Rojas, Alex Freeland and Santiago Espinal also in the mix.

Andujar is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Pirates.

Andujar went a collective 4-for-11 with a pair of extra-base hits, a walk and two runs while occupying the designated-hitter spot in each of the Padres' last three games, but he'll take a seat in the series opener in Pittsburgh. Though Nick Castellanos will serve as the team's DH on Monday, he's managed a lowly .485 OPS through 17 plate appearances this season and could cede more opportunities to Andujar if he's unable to get going at the dish.

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

Caissie has maintained an excellent .926 OPS through the Marlins' first nine games, but manager Clayton McCullough isn't yet ready to give the left-handed-hitting outfielder more opportunities against same-handed pitching. The 23-year-old will hit the bench for a third consecutive game while the Marlins face off against another lefty (Brandon Williamson), paving the way for Austin Slater to receive another start in right field.

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

The left-handed-hitting Conine will take a seat for the third game in a row while the Marlins face off against a third straight lefty starter (Brandon Williamson). Heriberto Hernandez will step in for Conine in left field.

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

The Marlins are facing off against a third straight left-handed starting pitcher (Brandon Williamson), so the left-handed-hitting Pauley will once again cede third base to Javier Sanoja. Despite being out of the lineup for Sunday's series finale against the Yankees, Pauley was able to come up big off the bench, delivering a two-run double in the eighth inning to give the Marlins the lead in their eventual 7-6 win.

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

Hicks has gotten off to a sizzling start to the season with a 1.164 OPS over 29 plate appearances, but the Marlins will shield the left-handed batter from southpaw Brandon Williamson in Monday's series opener. At least until the Marlins return the likes of Christopher Morel (oblique) and Kyle Stowers (hamstring) from the injured list, Hicks should have a clear path to regular at-bats versus right-handed pitching while making starts at catcher, first base or designated hitter.