MLB Player News

Herrera is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Twins.

Though he'll be on the bench for the series finale, Herrera appears to have moved ahead of Carson Kelly on the depth chart at catcher after being called up from Triple-A Reno on July 23 as a replacement for the injured Gabriel Moreno (shoulder). Herrera has started behind the dish in seven of the last 11 games but has mustered a lowly .296 OPS.

Gomes is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against Atlanta, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Gomes started the past four games and will head to the bench Sunday after going 1-for-15 during that stretch. Miguel Amaya will take over behind the plate and bat ninth.

Contreras is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rockies, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Contreras went 2-for-7 with a double, two RBI and a run across the first two games against the Rockies and will take a seat for Sunday's series finale. Andrew Knizner is starting behind the plate and batting eighth.

Murphy is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cubs, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Murphy started the first two games of the series in Chicago but will head to the bench for Sunday's finale. Travis d'Arnaud will step in behind the plate and bat fifth.

The Nationals reinstated Pineda (oblique) from the 60-day injured list Sunday and optioned him to Double-A Harrisburg, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Pineda has spent the entire season on the IL due to the left oblique strain, though he was cleared to begin a rehab assignment in late May before being shut down soon thereafter due to a setback. The 23-year-old catcher was cleared to return to game action in the minors coming out of the All-Star break and will ultimately settle at the Double-A level now that his 20-day rehab window has come to an end. Washington granted right-hander Paolo Espino his unconditional release to free up a spot on the 40-man roster for Pineda.

Realmuto is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Royals, Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Realmuto started the past three games after missing a couple contests due to a cut on his hand, and he'll receive Sunday off after going 4-for-11 with a home run, two RBI and three runs during that span. Garrett Stubbs will step in behind the plate to catch for Taijuan Walker.

Alvarez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Orioles.

Alvarez started the first two games of the series in Baltimore but will take a seat for the finale after going 0-for-6 with a walk. Omar Narvaez will step in behind the plate to catch for Jose Quintana.

Smith went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and a stolen base in Saturday's 8-3 loss to the Padres.

Smith has hit safely in four straight games, and he's driven in a run in each of them. The homer was his first since July 7, while the steal was his second of the campaign. The catcher is slashing .276/.384/.474 with 14 long balls, 56 RBI, 57 runs scored and 17 doubles through 85 contests overall.

Stephenson is not in the lineup for Saturday's game versus the Nationals.

Stephenson has a .528 OPS in 15 games since the All-Star break and will hit the bench Saturday for the second time in the past three games. Luke Maile will receive another start behind the plate for Cincinnati.

Diaz went 2-for-5 with two RBI on Friday against the Cardinals.

Diaz came out of the All-Star break without much punch at the plate, though he's changed that across his last six games. In that span, he's collected 11 hits in 25 at-bats while also tacking on four RBI and two runs scored. Since C.J. Cron and Randal Grichuk were dealt away, Diaz has hit cleanup twice, though he hit in his more customary sixth position Friday.