MLB Player News

D'Arnaud will start at catcher and bat fifth in Tuesday's game against the Nationals.

D'Arnaud closed out Atlanta's weekend series with Pittsburgh by sitting out consecutive games, but he's been behind the plate for both of the first two games of the series in Washington. Meanwhile, William Contreras is once again on the bench, so for the moment, d'Arnaud appears to have recaptured his standing atop the depth chart at catcher, if he ever really lost it at all.

Contreras will sit for the second straight game Tuesday against the Nationals.

Contreras started five out of six games last week, appearing four times behind the plate and once as the designated hitter. That seemed to suggest he was moving into a more consistent starting role, but it's now been Travis d'Arnaud behind the plate the last two games.

Diaz is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Guardians.

It's been a brutal season so far for Diaz, who has hit ninth in all but one of his 15 starts since May 15. He is hitting .204 on the season and .173 since the middle of May. Brian Serven will start behind the dish and hit eighth.

Heineman isn't included in the lineup for the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader with the Cardinals.

New call-up Jason Delay will get the start behind the plate for the early game Tuesday in what will mark his MLB debut, but expect Heineman to draw back into the starting nine for the nightcap. Heineman still looks to be ahead of both Michael Perez and Delay on the Pirates' depth chart at catcher.

D'Arnaud went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Monday's 9-5 win over the Nationals.

D'Arnaud has hit safely in his last three games, going 3-for-11 in that span. The catcher has seen his playing time slip with William Contreras seeing more action in June amid a surge. D'Arnaud hasn't been bad himself with a .252/.296/.447 slash line, seven home runs, 25 RBI, 22 runs scored and 10 doubles in 169 plate appearances this year, but it appears he's slipped into a lesser role for now.

The Pirates selected Delay's contract from Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday.

Delay will take the roster spot of Duane Underwood, who was placed on the COVID-19 injured list. The backstop has put together a .250/.324/.344 slash line with four doubles, seven RBI, one stolen base and eight runs scored through 22 games at Triple-A in 2022.

Casali will sit Monday against the Royals, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

Casali is playing through a hamstring issue and is expected to continue to do so, though he's now been on the bench for two straight games. Austin Wynns remains the starter behind the plate.

Knizner will start at catcher and bat ninth in Monday's game against the Pirates.

Knizner will start for the fifth time in six games while Yadier Molina continues to nurse an unspecified injury. With Molina missing time of late, Knizner hasn't been able to capitalize on the added opportunities afforded to him. He's gone hitless with six strikeouts in 16 at-bats over his last five starts.

The Phillies activated Marchan (hamstring) from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Monday, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

With J.T. Realmuto and Garrett Stubbs locked in as the top two catchers on the depth chart, the Phillies didn't have a spot on the 26-man active roster for Marchan, whose 20-day rehab window came to a close. He'll likely play on a regular basis at Lehigh Valley, with whom he slashed .235/.366/.412 in 10 games during his rehab assignment.

Contreras isn't starting Monday against the Nationals.

Contreras started in the last three games and went 2-for-10 with a homer, a double, two runs, two walks and three strikeouts. He'll get a breather while Travis d'Arnaud starts behind the plate and bats sixth Monday.