MLB Player News

Smith could find himself in a timeshare behind the plate when the regular season begins, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Smith entered spring training with a firm grasp on primary catcher duties, but that may have changed after he went only 3-for-21 (.143) in Cactus League play. Meanwhile, his main competition for backstop duties, Austin Barnes, posted a 1.033 OPS during spring contests. While manager Dave Roberts stated that the pair is part of a "partnership" behind the plate, a general idea of how playing time will be divided remains unclear.

The Reds optioned Stephenson to Triple-A Louisville on Sunday.

Cincinnati's top catching prospect wasn't a serious threat to crack the Opening Day roster with all of Tucker Barnhart, Curt Casali and Kyle Farmer ahead of him in the organizational pecking order. The 2015 first-round pick will likely spend the majority of the season at Louisville honing his receiving skills, but Stephenson could get a look in the majors at some point if the Reds are eager to phase out Barnhart in favor of a higher-upside offensive option behind the dish.

Jackson was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett on Friday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

While the move currently doesn't matter much with both the MLB and MiLB seasons suspended, it does confirm that Jackson will begin the regular season in the minors whenever play does resume. The 24-year-old did slug 28 homers in 85 games for Gwinnett last year, but his hit tool and defense behind the plate both remain a work in progress.

Nido has gone 2-for-16 (.125) with a 1:6 BB:K to begin the spring.

The 25-year-old came into camp the favorite to win the No. 2 catching job behind Wilson Ramos, and while Nido hasn't done anything to distinguish himself at the plate, his main competition Rene Rivera hasn't made a big impact either. Expect the battle to be won by whichever receiver the pitching staff prefers working with rather than the offensive contribution they can make.

Barrera has gone 1-for-7 with a strikeout to begin the spring.

The fact that the 25-year-old didn't get much playing time even when Welington Castillo was sidelined in camp with a sore shoulder indicates where Barrera sits on the depth chart for the Nats at catcher. He got his first cup of coffee last year in the majors and posted a .704 OPS through 101 games for Double-A Harrisburg, but Barrera will likely need multiple injuries behind the plate to return to the big-league roster in 2020.

The Reds will continue to hold voluntary workouts at their spring training facility in Goodyear, Arizona, while spring training is suspended, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. Barnhart, the Reds MLBPA representative, is among the Reds that will remain in Arizona for the short term.

Barnhart's wife is pregnant, so she and their young son have already gone home. "I will remain here until I'm told or given a little bit more information or clear vision on what the schedule looks like," Barnhart said. "I think after that, for me personally, I will probably go home and spend time with my family as much as possible and help take care of them as much as possible."

Manager Dave Martinez said Wednesday that he expects Gomes to play around 4-to-5 times per week during the regular season, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.

Though Martinez didn't say so explicitly, his division of the workload behind the plate implies that Gomes is the No. 1 catcher. Meanwhile, Martinez said that Suzuki, the other backstop on the roster, would serve as the regular battery mate for Max Scherzer and Anibal Sanchez. Suzuki is the superior hitter of the two, but Gomes' ability to control the run game along with his skills as a pitch framer look to be enough for him to handle the larger portion of a timeshare.

Contreras was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett on Wednesday.

The backstop will make the move to the International League for the first time after splitting the 2019 campaign between High-A Florida and Double-A Mississippi. Contreras doesn't have the long-term fantasy upside of older brother and fellow catcher Willson, but he boasts decent contact skills and should be able to stick behind the plate once he eventually gets the call to the big leagues.

Contreras went 3-for-3 with a solo home run and two runs scored in Tuesday's Cactus League game against the Giants.

Contreras has been chugging along this spring, posting a .292 batting average and .930 OPS in Cactus League play. The 27-year-old catcher had a solid 2019 campaign with 24 home runs and 64 RBI, and he should once again be one of the top options at the position in 2020.

Bart was reassigned to minor-league camp Tuesday, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Bart was in big-league camp to start the spring but was never under serious consideration for an Opening Day roster spot. The 23-year-old may be the catcher of the future for the Giants, but that future won't be coming just yet as he's played only 22 games at the Double-A level. His destination to start the season has yet to be announced.