MLB Player News

McGuire will start at catcher and bat seventh in Thursday's game against the Pirates.

McGuire is drawing his third consecutive start and appears to have leapfrogged Kevin Plawecki on the depth chart at catcher. Regarded as a solid defender and pitch framer, McGuire has added to his value by producing an .847 OPS in his first eight games with Boston since coming over in a deadline deal with the White Sox. Once his bat predictably cools down, McGuire could fall back into more of a timeshare with Plawecki.

Plawecki is out of the lineup for Thursday's game in Pittsburgh.

Plawecki will sit for the third game in a row, and for the time being, he looks to be Boston's clear No. 2 catcher behind Reese McGuire. The deadline deal that sent Christian Vazquez to Houston was expected to open up more opportunities for Plawecki, but McGuire -- who was acquired from the White Sox on Aug. 2 -- has performed better than expected with the bat and has at least temporarily earned the No. 1 role.

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

Even after Houston dealt for an established everyday catcher in Christian Vazquez ahead of the Aug. 2 trade deadline, Maldonado has remained the Astros' No. 1 backstop. Though Vazquez is behind the dish Thursday, Maldonado has dominated the playing time, catching in four of the previous five contests. Aside from popping the occasional home run, Maldonado's fantasy utility is limited, but his defensive acumen and chemistry with the pitching staff should continue to earn him ample opportunities for Houston.

Zavala will start at catcher and bat eighth in Thursday's game against the Astros.

Though Zavala is nominally the White Sox's No. 2 catcher, Yasmani Grandal's underwhelming production has allowed Zavala to pick up more playing time than anticipated. With Grandal resting for the series finale, Zavala will catch for the third time in five games. For the season, the 28-year-old backstop owns a .287/.331/.410 slash line over 135 plate appearances.

Grandal is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Astros.

Grandal will be getting a breather after he started each of the past three games -- two at catcher and one as a designated hitter -- while going 2-for-9 with two walks. Though Grandal remains the White Sox's top option behind the plate, his grip on the No. 1 role has loosened while he's submitted a disappointing .565 OPS over 283 plate appearances on the season in addition to missing time due to injury. Seby Zavala will catch for starting pitcher Lucas Giolito on Thursday.

Raleigh went 2-for-4 with two homers, three RBI and two runs scored in Wednesday's victory over the Angels.

Raleigh launched a solo shot in the fifth inning, then a two-run homer in the ninth that scored J.P. Crawford. The catcher is up to 18 home runs on the year and four for the month. Raleigh has struggled for consistency, picking up 10 hits this month while also striking out 14 times. His batting average now sits at .208, the highest it has been since it was .211 on July 30.

Langeliers went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 7-2 win over the Rangers.

Langliers crushed an 0-2 curveball over the right-field fence in the eighth inning for his first career home run. The rookie now has extra-base hits in each of his two starts this season, picking up right where he left off in Triple-A, where he maintained a .510 slugging percentage. Oakland currently boasts one of the better offensive catchers in the majors in Sean Murphy, so Langliers figures to continue filling in as the designated hitter or slotting in behind the dish during Murphy's off days.

Murphy went 3-for-5 with a double, two home runs, three RBI and three total runs scored in Wednesday's victory over the Rangers.

The veteran catcher was no match for Cole Ragans, as he tagged the southpaw for two home runs on the night. He also hit a double in the top of the eighth for his third extra-base hit of the night. Murphy is now slashing .251/.327/.450 on the season and is top three among all catchers in HR, RBI and runs.

Barnhart isn't starting Wednesday against the Guardians.

Barnhart started the last two games and went 4-for-7 with two RBI, a run and a walk. Eric Haase will take over behind the plate and bat sixth.

Heim isn't starting Wednesday's game against the Athletics.

Heim started the last two games and went 2-for-7 with a double, an RBI and a walk. Meibrys Viloria is taking over behind the plate and batting fifth.