MLB Player News

Diaz isn't in the Rockies' lineup Saturday against the Giants, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Diaz is just 3-for-18 with five strikeouts since the beginning of July, so he'll get a breather Saturday to regroup. Austin Wynns will take Diaz's place behind the dish and bat ninth.

Contreras isn't in the Cardinals' lineup Saturday against the White Sox, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Contreras underwent a tooth procedure that caused him to miss Friday's game, and he'll remain out of Saturday's lineup. Ivan Herrera will once again fill in behind the dish and bat eighth.

Smith went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and scored an additional run in an 11-4 victory versus the Angels on Friday.

Smith is one of four Dodgers position players elected to this season's upcoming All-Star Game, and they all went deep in the contest, with Smith completing the feat on a two-run shot in the eighth inning. The backstop finished with his first multi-hit game since June 20 -- he had been slumping with a .154/.306/.359 slash line over his previous 11 games. Despite that stretch, Smith is still putting up excellent numbers on the campaign, posting a .279/.396/.498 slash line, 13 homers, 44 RBI, one steal and a sterling 43:38 BB:K over 283 plate appearances.

Alvarez went 4-for-5 with one RBI and one run scored in Friday's 7-5 extra-inning win over the Padres.

Alvarez's home run streak ended at three games, but he was able to put up a third straight multi-hit effort. The catcher has gone 10-for-22 (.455) over six games in July, matching his total number of hits from his last 19 contests in June. The upward trend has him at a .241/.297/.512 slash line with 16 home runs, 34 RBI and 29 runs scored through 219 plate appearances.

Ruiz will sit Friday against Texas.

Ruiz will get a breather after he went 1-for-9 with three strikeouts while starting the last two contests. Riley Adams will draw the start at catcher and bat seventh in the series opener with the Rangers.

Contreras will sit Friday versus the White Sox, Bally Sports Midwest reports.

Contreras will get a breather after he went 9-for-15 with a homer, four doubles, three RBI and four runs scored over four games against Miami. Ivan Herrera will take over behind the plate and bat eighth in the series opener with Chicago.

Stephenson isn't in the Reds' lineup Friday against the Brewers.

Stephenson is 5-for-16 with a homer, four RBI and six runs scored since the beginning of July. He'll catch a breather Friday while Luke Maile starts behind the dish and bats ninth, and Will Benson will serve as Cincinnati's designated hitter.

Fortes isn't in the Marlins' lineup Friday against the Phillies, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Fortes is just 2-for-34 across his last 13 games and will take a seat Friday as Miami searches for more production behind the dish. Jacob Stallings will start at catcher and bat eighth.

Adams went 3-for-4 with two doubles in Thursday's extra-inning loss to the Reds.

It's the second three-hit effort in Adams' last five starts, although that period stretches back to June 22 and he went 0-for-11 in between the two big performances. The 27-year-old catcher is slashing .282/.346/.535 on the season with 10 of his 20 hits going for extra bases (five doubles, two triples and three homers) while seeing inconsistent playing time behind Keibert Ruiz.

Alvarez went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and an additional RBI in Thursday's 9-0 win over the Diamondbacks.

Alvarez has homered in four of his last five games, giving him 16 long balls on the year. He's also collected seven RBI in that span. The catcher's up to a .227/.285/.505 slash line with 33 RBI and 28 runs scored through 213 plate appearances. He should continue to see steady playing time as long as he's squaring up the ball well.