MLB Player News

Grandal is out of the lineup Sunday against the Angels.

Austin Barnes will check in behind the plate while Grandal receives a maintenance day in the series finale. Grandal had started each of the Dodgers' previous five games at catcher, going 6-for-15 with four extra-base knocks, seven walks, five runs and five RBi in those contests.

Diaz is out of the lineup Sunday against the Phillies.

Diaz will receive a well-deserved breather after starting 14 consecutive games behind the plate for the Pirates while Francisco Cervelli (concussion) was sidelined. With Cervelli activated from the 10-day disabled list Sunday and re-entering the lineup, Diaz may only be in store for a couple starts per week so long as Cervelli avoids any sort of setback on the health front. That still might be enough to make Diaz playable in NL-only or deeper two-catcher formats, as he's been one of the best No. 2 backstops in baseball this season. Diaz has hit .289 with seven home runs, 23 RBI and 26 runs across 155 plate appearances.

Stallings was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis prior to Sunday's game against the Phillies, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic Pittsburgh reports.

Stallings was promoted June 22 when starting catcher Francisco Cervelli landed on the disabled list with a concussion, and Cervelli's return Sunday sends Stallings back to the minors. He did not make a start while in the majors. The 28-year-old returns to Indianapolis, where he has a .289/.335/.396 slash line in 42 games.

Realmuto went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Saturday's loss to the Nationals.

The 27-year-old has hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games and he's already gone yard twice in July, bringing his total to 12 home runs this season. He's not running like he did in past years, but Realmuto is right up there with Buster Posey and Willson Contreras as one of the best pure hitters at the position.

Hedges is not in the lineup Saturday against the Diamondbacks.

Hedges is hitting .280 with an .813 OPS in eight games since returning from an elbow injury. He'll sit Saturday in favor of A.J. Ellis.

Mesoraco is out of the lineup against the Rays on Saturday, Tim Healey of Newsday Sports reports.

Mesoraco will receive a breather after picking up two hits during Friday's victory. In his absence, Kevin Plawecki will catch Steven Matz and bat seventh.

Caratini is starting at catcher and batting seventh in Saturday's game against the Reds.

Regular catcher Willson Contreras is getting a breather after five straight starts, pushing Caratini into the lineup. On the season, the 24-year-old is slashing .254/.315/.299 and he's still searching for his first home run.

Contreras is out of the lineup Saturday against Cincinnati.

Contreras will retreat to the bench following five straight starts behind the plate, during which he hit .556 with a 1.535 OPS. In his place, Victor Caratini will handle the catching duties and bat seventh.

Mesoraco went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Friday's win over the Rays.

He missed Wednesday's game after getting smacked in the head by a backswing Tuesday, but Thursday's off day gave Mesoraco enough time to recover and jump right back in the lineup. He's enjoying a strong run at the plate heading into the All-Star break, slashing .308/.413/.513 over his last 13 games with two homers and eight RBI while seeing roughly two-thirds of the playing time at catcher. Kevin Plawecki's also been hitting well, however, so Mesoraco will need to stay hot to continue getting a majority of the starts.

Murphy was scratched from Friday's lineup against the Mariners to be with his wife for the birth of their child, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Tony Wolters figures to replace Murphy until he returns to the team. He'll be placed on the paternity list and should return for Tuesday's series opener against Arizona.