MLB Player News

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.

Hedges isn't in the lineup Wednesday against the Tigers.

Hedges went 0-for-3 with a strikeout Tuesday against Detroit and will head to the bench for the second time in the last three games. Luke Maile is starting behind the dish and batting eighth.

McGuire will start at catcher and bat eighth in Wednesday's game against the Pirates, Bill Koch of The Providence Journal reports.

McGuire will check in behind the plate for the second day in a row and appears to have at least worked his way into a timeshare at catcher with Kevin Plawecki. Since arriving at the Aug. 2 trade deadline in a deal with the White Sox, McGuire has been a pleasant surprise as a hitter with a .409 average through his first 22 at-bats with Boston, but he'll bring most of his value on the defensive end moving forward.

Plawecki isn't starting Wednesday against the Pirates, Bill Koch of The Providence Journal reports.

Plawecki has gone just 1-for-15 with a double and two strikeouts over his last five matchups and will retreat to the bench for the third time in the last four games. Reese McGuire is starting behind the dish and batting eighth.

Stassi isn't in the lineup Wednesday against the Mariners, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

Stassi will retreat to the bench after he went 0-for-8 with five strikeouts over the last two games. Kurt Suzuki is starting behind the plate and batting sixth.

Rutschman isn't starting Wednesday against the Blue Jays, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Rutschman is getting a rare day off after he hit .250 with two homers, a double and four RBI over the last five games. Robinson Chirinos will take his place behind the dish and bat ninth Wednesday.

Heim went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Tuesday's 5-1 loss to the Athletics.

Heim's sixth-inning single brought home the Rangers' lone run, but he could have had another RBI two innings earlier. With two outs and Nathaniel Lowe on first base, Heim doubled, but Lowe, who appeared to hesitate on what might be considered an aggressive send by third base coach Corey Ragsdale, was thrown out at home. Heim has taken on a larger-than-expected workload in 2022, thanks in part to Mitch Garver's arm injury, and has responded well. His 340 plate appearances are a career high in the majors, and the catcher is slashing .252/.324/.443.

Murphy went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Tuesday's 5-1 win over the Rangers.

Murphy went yard off Kohei Arihara to give the Athletics a 3-0 lead in the third inning. It's been a productive August for Murphy -- he's batting .304 (14-for-46) with two homers and eight RBI in 13 games. The catcher is up to a .246/.324/.429 slash line, 14 long balls, 49 RBI, 48 runs scored, one stolen base and 26 doubles through 106 contests. With top prospect Shea Langeliers joining the Athletics on Tuesday, Murphy could see a slight reduction in playing time, though it's expected he'll still regularly serve as the designated hitter when he's not behind the plate.