MLB Player News
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Sandy Leon C | ATL
Marlins' Sandy Leon: Getting bulk of work behind plate
Leon will start at catcher and bat eighth Wednesday against the Diamondbacks, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
Leon will be behind the dish for the third game in a row and appears to have emerged as the team's primary backstop while Jorge Alfaro (hamstring) remains on the injured list. Through his first 10 games with Miami, Leon is batting .267 with two runs, no extra-base hits and no RBI.
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Tucker Barnhart C | TEX
Reds' Tucker Barnhart: Sits for day game
Barnhart is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the White Sox.
Barnhart went 2-for-3 while catching all nine innings of the Reds' 9-0 loss Tuesday night, so he'll be getting a breather while Cincinnati and Chicago conclude their series Wednesday with an early game. Tyler Stephenson will pick up the start behind the dish, batting seventh.
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Joey Bart C | PIT
Giants' Joey Bart: Recalled by Giants
Bart was recalled by the Giants on Tuesday, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.
Bart's stay on the big-league roster may be temporary, as he'll be filling the roster spot that had belonged to Kevin Gausman, who isn't expected to miss much time while recovering from the side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine. It's possible he'll stick around as Buster Posey's backup, but it's unclear why the Giants would abandon their plan to give Bart regular at-bats in Triple-A right as the minor-league seasons are beginning.
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Willson Contreras 1B | BOS
Cubs' Willson Contreras: Not starting night game
Contreras will be on the bench for the second half of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Dodgers.
Contreras went 0-for-3 with a walk in the afternoon game. It's no surprise that he won't be asked to catch two games in one day. Tony Wolters will take over behind the plate in his absence.
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Will Smith C | LAD
Dodgers' Will Smith: Sits for Game 1 of doubleheader
Smith is out of the lineup for the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader with the Cubs.
Clayton Kershaw will start for the Dodgers in the afternoon contest, so Smith will take a seat while the lefty's personal catcher, Austin Barnes, steps in behind the dish. Expect Smith to catch Trevor Bauer in the nightcap.
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Austin Nola C | COL
Padres' Austin Nola: First hit of season
Nola went 1-for-2 with an RBI double and a walk in Monday's 2-0 victory over Pittsburgh.
Nola missed most of April with a broken finger and this was only his second start of the season. Encouragingly, he has started two of the last three games -- once against a righty and once against a lefty.
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J.T. Realmuto C | PHI
Phillies' J.T. Realmuto: Clubs third homer in win
Realmuto went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Monday's 4-3 victory over the Brewers.
Realmuto launched a two-run blast deep to left field in the bottom of the first inning, putting the Phillies back on top 2-1. The 30-year-old backstop continues to see the ball well at the dish, now hitting .309 with three homers, 13 RBI and two stolen bases in 28 games.
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Jacob Stallings C | BAL
Pirates' Jacob Stallings: Day off Monday
Stallings is not in the lineup for Monday's game against the Padres, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.
Stallings sits for the second time in the last three games, though he's still the clear starter behind the plate for the Pirates, starting 20 of the team's 28 games thus far. Michael Perez will get the nod in his absence.
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James McCann C | ARI
Mets' James McCann: Day off Monday
McCann will sit Monday against the Cardinals, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
McCann has handled a very heavy workload behind the plate this season. He'll find himself on the bench for just the fourth time in 23 games Monday. Tomas Nido starts in his absence.