MLB Player News

The Pirates would likely recall Diaz if Francisco Cervelli (foot) is forced to miss time.

Diaz made his first start in the majors Sunday before Pittsburgh returned him to Triple-A Indianapolis. The catcher recently returned from elbow surgery and has played in only 15 games in 2016. He has offensive potential -- he batted .328 in 326 Double-A at-bats in 2014 -- but it remains to be seen how much he would play.

D'Arnaud is hitting second in the order for Friday's game against the Rockies.

D'Arnaud is typically slotted around the seventh spot in the order, but will head all the way up to bat behind Curtis Granderson during the Mets' second game of their series against Colorado. He will be behind the plate and should be rested up after getting a day off for Thursday's outing.

Contreras is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Mariners.

With Jon Lester on the mound for the Cubs on Friday, David Ross -- who regularly catches Lester -- will get the start behind the plate. Contreras started at a different position five of the last six times Lester was on the mound, but the returning Chris Coghlan will enter the lineup Friday instead. With Coghlan providing another option in the outfield moving forward, Contreras' playing time could take a bit of a hit.

Rupp is not in the lineup for Thursday's tilt with Atlanta, Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com reports.

It appears to be just a routine maintenance day for Rupp, who has made three consecutive starts coming into Thursday. Carlos Ruiz is making the start behind the dish and batting sixth. Rupp is 5-for-31 (.161) in 10 games since the start of the second half.

Realmuto went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles, one walk, two runs scored and one RBI in Wednesday's 11-1 rout of the Phillies.

Realmuto reached base four times in what is likely his last start atop the lineup as speedster Dee Gordon returns to the team Thursday. Realmuto has done an admirable job as the leadoff man while breaking out with a robust .313/.347/.417 slash line through 326 at-bats this season. It will be interesting to see just how manager Don Mattingly handles the playing time and lineup now that Gordon is back in the mix, but Realmuto will remain a valuable contributor regardless of where he is positioned offensively.

D'Arnaud is out of the lineup Thursday against the Rockies, ESPN's Adam Rubin reports.

He started the last two games, but will take a seat for Thursday's day game, making way for Rene Rivera behind the dish. D'Arnaud is hitting .246/.299/.333 with two home runs in 137 plate appearances this season, but there is more upside in his bat than he has shown so far and he should still be rostered in the majority of formats.

Stewart (knee) ran the bases on Wednesday and will increase his baseball activities this weekend, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

There is still no timetable for Stewart's return to Pittsburgh. In his absence, Eric Fryer has been serving as the backup catcher for the Pirates. With Fryer playing well, it's unclear whether Stewart will reclaim his spot in Pittsburgh upon his return from the disabled list.

Contreras is out of the lineup Wednesday against the White Sox.

This will be the second day in a row that Contreras is absent from the starting lineup. Miguel Montero will be behind the plate Wednesday, batting fifth.

Grandal is not in Wednesday's lineup against Tampa Bay, J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group reports.

Grandal is just getting a normal day off, despite his recent power surge. A.J. Ellis will take over behind the plate and will bat eighth.

Grandal went 1-for-3 with his 14th home run of the season Tuesday against the Rays.

That's eight homers in the past month for Grandal, who is just two shy of last season's career-high total. The recent power surge has raised the catcher's slugging percentage to .430, but a dismal .227 BABIP has suppressed his average to a meager .211 mark.