MLB Player News

Caratini was informed Saturday that he made the Cubs' Opening Day roster, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.

In a surprise move, Caratini will open the season as the Cubs' backup catcher. The 24-year-old backstop was expected to open the season in the minors, but a strong showing in camp (.243/.391/.378 across 46 plate appearances) prompted the Cubs to keep him over veteran Chris Gimenez. The youngster isn't expected to see regular playing time unless Willson Contreras suffers an injury, so it's still possible he'll head back to the minors for some more consistent playing time if necessary.

Stallings was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Saturday.

Stallings unsurprisingly failed to crack the Opening Day roster with Francisco Cervelli and Elias Diaz making the team as the two catchers. The 28-year-old has only appeared in 10 major-league games over the course of his career and will continue to serve as organizational depth moving forward.

Realmuto (back) will not be ready for Opening Day and could begin the season on the disabled list, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

According to manager Don Mattingly, it's "highly likely" that he will land on the DL, while J.T. Riddle (shoulder) is in the exact same position. There should be a more definitive answer to his timetable in the coming days, but either way, expect Tomas Telis to start the season as Miami's catcher.

Stewart is still in the running for the final spot on the Braves' Opening Day roster, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

With Johan Camargo (back) headed for the DL, the Braves are deciding between an additional utility player like Danny Santana, or a third catcher in Stewart, which would allow the team to use Tyler Flowers and Kurt Suzuki as late-game pinch hitters. For his part, Stewart has had a decent spring in his limited opportunities, going 4-for-12, but the 36-year-old is highly unlikely to see enough playing time to have any real fantasy value even if he does win the job.

Nido was optioned to minor-league camp Friday, Matt Ehalt of The Bergen Record reports.

This comes as no surprise, as Travis d'Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki are firmly entrenched as the Mets' top two catchers and Nido has yet to play above Double-A. He will likely head to Triple-A Las Vegas for the minor-league season and then join the big-league club when rosters expand in September, if injuries don't create a spot for him back in New York sooner than that.

Manager Andy Green said that Hedges will be okay after being hit by a pitch on the left calf Thursday, Dennis Lin of The Athletic San Diego reports.

The HBP forced Hedges from Thursday's contest, but it doesn't appear to be anything that'll affect him moving forward. The Padres could opt to hold Hedges out of their next spring training game Friday against the Rangers as a precaution but beyond that, Hedges should be back behind the plate in the near future.

Hedges was removed from Thursday's game after being struck by a pitch.

Nate Easley replaced Hedges as a pinch runner in the top of the sixth inning. Consider Hedges day-to-day with more information to follow on his status in the coming hours.

Contreras is likely best suited to hit fourth for the Cubs behind Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Contreras didn't hit fourth for the Cubs last season until June 5, as he generally was slotted into the bottom half of the lineup, though he did bat second once. From that date on, the young catcher batted .307 with 13 home runs and 38 RBI in 44 games batting cleanup. With studs like Bryant and Rizzo in front of him, Contreras could easily surpass the 74 RBI he posted in 2017. The 25-year-old figures to be one of the top fantasy producers at the catcher position.

Bethancourt (arm) recorded one at-bat during Monday's game against the Dodgers.

Bethancourt left Saturday's game after being hit by a pitch, but returned Monday to go 0-for-1 at the plate. Although it's likely he'll begin the season in the minor leagues, it's still good to see the 26-year-old catcher back out on the field. Manny Pina and Jett Bandy look to be the two backstops that will make Milwaukee's Opening Day roster with Stephen Vogt likely on the DL.

Sanchez was cut from major-league camp Monday, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

After reporting to minor-league camp, Sanchez will likely be assigned to Triple-A Sacramento. Sanchez missed much of the Giants' games this spring as he had to tend to a hamstring injury. With Buster Posey and Nick Hundley poised to serve as the team's catchers this season, Sanchez will provide organizational depth.