MLB Player News

Ramirez went 2-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 8-1 win over the Reds.

Ramirez singled and scored in the seventh inning before driving in a pair with another single in the eighth to make it an 8-1 ballgame. The 24-year-old backstop is still looking for his first home run of the season and has yet to display much extra-base pop through 12 games, slashing .250/.365/.364 with three doubles, a triple, four RBI, seven runs scored, one stolen base and a 7:11 BB:K across his 52 plate appearances.

Moreno is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Mets.

It's a routine day of rest for Moreno, who has reached base three times and driven in a run in the first two games of the series. James McCann will do the catching and bat sixth for the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

High-A Eugene placed Villarroel on the 7-day injured list April 3 as he recovers from offseason meniscus surgery, Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline reports.

Per Callis, Villarroel will be playing in extended spring training games soon, so he could return in late April or May. The 21-year-old catcher hit .259 with eight home runs and 20 steals in 100 games last year in the lower levels of the Astros system.

Stephenson is not in the lineup for Thursday's contest in Miami.

Stephenson had started each of the last four games for the Reds, so he'll get a breather in Thursday's series finale. P.J. Higgins is getting the start at catcher and batting ninth for Cincinnati.

Kelly went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in Wednesday's 6-2 win over the Rays.

Kelly extended his hitting streak to four games with the multi-hit effort, and he's now batting .281 for the season with a .705 OPS. The veteran catcher has appeared in 10 games so far, with Miguel Amaya appearing in seven. Kelly has the slight edge for playing time at the moment, though the Cubs can get both bats in the lineup by having one or the other serve as the DH and relying on Moises Ballesteros to serve as the backup behind the plate.

Amaya is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays.

Moises Ballesteros will enter the starting nine at designated hitter in place of Amaya, who had been included in the lineup as the Cubs' DH or catcher in six of the previous seven games. Amaya has compiled a .929 OPS through 20 plate appearances on the season and should continue to see fairly steady playing time while he's swinging a hot bat.

Millas will start at catcher and bat eighth Wednesday against the Cardinals.

Keibert Ruiz was expected to open the season as the Nationals' clear No. 1 catcher, but he's instead been part of a timeshare at the position with Millas. The two backstops have alternated starts through Washington's first 12 games, but neither has separated himself from the other from a performance standpoint. Millas has maintained a .509 OPS through 21 plate appearances, while Ruiz owns a .563 OPS over 22 plate appearances.

Ruiz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cardinals.

Ruiz remains part of a timeshare at catcher with Drew Millas, as the two backstops have alternated starts behind the plate through the Nationals' first 12 games. Neither player has done much to separate himself from the other, with Ruiz posting a .563 OPS to Millas' .509.

Pages is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game in Washington.

Pages will get a breather for the afternoon game after starting behind the plate in three of the Cardinals' previous four contests. Ivan Herrera will handle catching duties in the series finale.

Susac went 3-for-4 with two RBI, a run scored and a triple in Tuesday's 6-0 win over the Phillies.

With Patrick Bailey getting the night off, Susac made his second big-league start and turned in another impressive performance. The 24-year-old catcher singled in the second inning and added another base hit in the fifth before coming around to score. He also delivered a two-run triple in the eighth, driving in San Francisco's final runs. Across eight plate appearances this season, he has gone 6-for-7 with one walk. While Bailey should continue to see the majority of the reps behind the plate, Susac's strong play to begin the season could result in more playing time. Per Maria Guardado of MLB.com, manager Tony Vitello said, "I think [Susac has] earned the right to be out there for us more often. It's not an easy thing to go out there all the time. ... You'll be seeing plenty of both guys as the season goes on."