MLB Player News

Contreras isn't in the Brewers' lineup for Thursday's game against the Giants.

With lefty Scott Alexander opening ahead of the right-handed Jakob Junis for San Francisco, the Brewers will sit Contreras on Thursday in favor of the switch-hitting Victor Caratini.

Nola is out of the lineup again Thursday against the Nationals.

Brett Sullivan will make a second straight start at catcher and could continue to get regular looks versus right-handed pitching opponents, though neither backstop has been particularly productive with the bat this year. It's a situation to avoid in standard fantasy leagues.

Ruiz is not in the lineup Thursday against the Padres.

It's a late-afternoon start in Washington following a night game Wednesday in which Ruiz went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, so the 24-year-old will receive some rest. Riley Adams will catch and bat eighth Thursday versus the Padres and lefty Blake Snell.

Contreras is not in the lineup for Thursday's game in Cincinnati, 101 ESPN St. Louis reports.

It's a day game after a night game, so Andrew Knizner will do the catching for Miles Mikolas. Contreras is in the midst of a 1-for-24 slide at the dish.

Alvarez went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's loss to the Cubs.

Alvarez accounted for all of New York's runs Wednesday with his two-run homer in the third inning. It was his third long ball over his past four contests, a span in which the backstop is hitting .462 (6-for-13) with seven RBI and no strikeouts. The injured Tomas Nido (eye) and Omar Narvaez (calf) may be ready to return to the Mets soon, but it wouldn't be surprising to see Alvarez continue to hold down primary catcher duties given his recent offensive surge.

Diaz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 10-2 loss to the Marlins.

Diaz smoked a Sandy Alcantara slider 427 feet for a homer. He has clubbed five long balls in 2023, putting him on pace to reach double digits for the third time in his career. The catcher has been one of the most surprising fantasy players of the season, as he is sporting a career-high .913 OPS after never previously topping .800 in a campaign. In addition to the increased pop, Diaz has walked 13 times, as he closes in on a career high of 30 free passes.

Narvaez (calf) will begin a minor-league rehab assignment Thursday with High-A Brooklyn, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Narvaez will probably remain at Brooklyn through the weekend before advancing to Triple-A Syracuse. He needs a lot of rehab at-bats because he's been out since early April due to a severe calf strain, but the 31-year-old catcher is pushing for a return to the Mets around early-to-mid June. It'll be a complicated situation in Queens if Francisco Alvarez, Gary Sanchez and Tomas Nido are all healthy and performing well at that juncture.

Fortes is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rockies, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Jacob Stallings will get a turn behind the dish Wednesday after Fortes started at catcher in three of the past four games. Fortes is beginning to heat up at the plate and now owns a poor -- but improving -- .557 OPS, which is still nearly 200 points above Stallings' mark (.364).

Gomes is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Mets.

Gomes will give way to Tucker Barnhart behind the dish after previously starting at catcher in three of the Cubs' last four games. Since coming off the 7-day injured list May 10 after recovering from a concussion, Gomes is hitting .286 with a home run and six RBI in eight games.

Casali remains out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cardinals.

Casali has now started in just two of the Reds' last 10 games, and he's recorded just one hit in 22 at-bats dating back to April 19. The 34-year-old appears to have slipped to third on the Reds' depth chart at catcher behind Tyler Stephenson and Luke Maile.