MLB Player News
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Liam Hicks C | MIA
Marlins' Liam Hicks: Late addition to lineup Saturday
Hicks has been added to Miami's lineup ahead of Saturday's game against Atlanta.
Hicks was originally scheduled for a day out of the starting lineup, but he's since been added, as Nick Fortes was scratched due to neck stiffness. This will be Hicks' third straight start at catcher and his fourth over the Marlins' past five games.
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Nick Fortes C | TB
Marlins' Nick Fortes: Scratched from lineup Saturday
Fortes was removed from Saturday's lineup against Atlanta due to neck stiffness, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
Fortes was in Miami's original lineup for what would have been his first start since Tuesday. However, he was later removed due to the neck issue. Liam Hicks is starting behind the plate and batting ninth Saturday in Fortes' stead.
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Sean Murphy C | ATL
Braves' Sean Murphy: Could be activated Tuesday
Murphy (ribs) is slated to play nine innings for Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday and could be activated from the injured list Tuesday, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.
Murphy kicked off a rehab stint with Gwinnett on March 31 and has gone 2-for-10 with a homer and two RBI through three games. If he's able to complete Sunday's game without any setbacks, the veteran catcher could be back behind the plate for Atlanta's series opener versus the Phillies on Tuesday. Prospect Drake Baldwin has been starting at catcher in Murphy's absence, but he has struggled to a .291 OPS through 25 plate appearances and may soon head back to the minors.
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Joey Bart C | PIT
Pirates' Joey Bart: Not starting Saturday
Bart is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees.
Bart started behind the plate in three of Pittsburgh's previous four games, but he'll get a breather Saturday while Endy Rodriguez takes over at catcher. Bart has logged a .261/.370/.261 slash line through 27 plate appearances to begin the campaign, though he doesn't have any extra-base hits and has struck out at a 33.3 percent clip.
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Ivan Herrera DH | STL
Cardinals' Ivan Herrera: Idle Saturday
Herrera isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game versus Boston, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
After slugging four home runs and tallying nine RBI over his last two games, Herrera will take a seat Saturday to give Pedro Pages a chance to start behind the plate.
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Will Smith C | LAD
Dodgers' Will Smith: Not starting Saturday
Smith isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Philadelphia.
Smith's eight-game hitting streak was broken up by an 0-for-2 performance Friday, though he still managed to draw two walks. Austin Barnes will take his place behind home plate Saturday and bat ninth.
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Keibert Ruiz C | WAS
Nationals' Keibert Ruiz: Getting rest Saturday
Ruiz isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Diamondbacks, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports.
An 0-for-4 performance Friday put an end to Ruiz's six-game hitting streak to begin the season, and he'll now get a breather against Eduardo Rodriguez and the D-backs. Riley Adams will start at catcher instead and bat ninth.
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Martin Maldonado C | SD
Padres' Martin Maldonado: Goes deep in loss
Maldonado went 1-for-2 with a solo home run Friday in a 3-1 loss to the Cubs.
Maldonado supplied San Diego's only run of the game with a solo blast to left field in the third inning. The veteran catcher had gone just 2-for-11 heading into Friday, and his homer against Chicago was his first of the campaign. Maldonado and Elias Diaz have split work behind the plate for the Padres pretty evenly so far this season -- the former has played in five games and logged 13 plate appearances while the latter has registered 16 plate appearances and has also appeared in five contests.
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Patrick Bailey C | SF
Giants' Patrick Bailey: Two doubles in three-hit game
Bailey went 3-for-5 with two doubles, one RBI and one run scored in Friday's 10-9 extra-innings win over the Mariners.
Bailey had gone 0-for-9 across his previous five games. The 25-year-old is seeing a majority of the playing time behind the plate over Sam Huff while Tom Murphy (back) is on the 60-day injured list. Bailey hit .234 with a .637 OPS over 121 games in 2024, so while the steady playing time is nice, the rest of his offensive production is pretty standard for a catcher. He's also a reigning Gold Glove winner, so his strong defense will afford him some leeway through slumps with the bat.