MLB Player News

Murphy was removed from Thursday's spring game with an apparent injury, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

The specifics of the injury remain unclear, but Murphy appeared to take a shot to his helmet on a backswing prior to exiting the contest. More should be known following the conclusion of Thursday's Cactus League game. In the meantime, consider him day-to-day.

The Braves reassigned Jackson to their minor-league camp Tuesday, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

After struggling at the plate while mostly serving as an outfielder in his first three professional seasons with the Mariners, the No. 6 overall pick of the 2014 first-year player draft has boosted his stock in dynasty settings since being dealt to the Braves in November 2016. In addition to moving back to catcher -- the position he played in high school -- Jackson displayed the premium power that had eluded him during his time with the Mariners, finishing his first season in the Atlanta system with an .808 OPS across two levels. That earned Jackson an invitation to major-league spring training, and he'll now look to apply the instruction he received to what will likely be a full-season assignment at Double-A Mississippi. If the 22-year-old displays further improvement defensively and reduces his strikeout rate this season, he could make a big climb up prospect lists.

Caratini is day-to-day with a sore left knee, Carrie Muskat of MLB.com reports.

Caratini said that the knee was feeling a little tight after getting plunked by a pitch and being involved in a collision at home plate during Tuesday's contest. The 24-year-old is battling for the backup catcher role on the Opening Day roster.

Realmuto (back) said Wednesday that he's hopeful to resume baseball activities in the next day or two, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

The Marlins have been taking it easy on Realmuto after he suffered a lower-back contusion during Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Yankees, but there's no concern about the catcher's status for Opening Day. With Realmuto expecting his bruising to subside by the weekend, he should be able to take part in batting practice and positional drills in the coming days and potentially return to exhibition action at some point next week. The backstop has gone 5-for-22 with one home run and three RBI at the dish this spring.

Contreras went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's Cactus League loss to the Padres.

Contreras sat out the last week with the flu, but he wasted no time getting back into the swing of things. He should be good to go moving forward and figures to be one of the top fantasy options behind the plate this season.

Manager Don Mattingly said he's confident Realmuto (back) will be ready for Opening Day, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Realmuto suffered a lower-back contusion over the weekend after colliding with Gleyber Torres on a pickoff play, but fortunately the issue doesn't appear to be anything that will keep him sidelined for too long. Mattingly noted the backstop will get a few more days to rest as he waits for the soreness to subside, but it sounds like the Marlins are simply being cautious with their star catcher. Consider him day-to-day for the time being.

Contreras (illness) is starting at catcher and batting cleanup for the Cubs' split-squad game against the Padres on Tuesday.

After missing a week of action with the flu, Contreras will make his return to the lineup as anticipated. With the illness behind him now, he can regain his focus in preparing for the regular season as he takes on another season as the primary backstop for Chicago.

Kelly is hitting .130 (3-for-23) with two doubles, two RBI, four walks and two runs in nine spring training games.

The struggles are an extension of Kelly's prior stints against major-league pitching. The 23-year-old backstop slashed just .171/.236/.220 with no homers and seven RBI across 44 regular-season big-league games in 2016-17, and hit just .182 over 33 spring at-bats last season as well. Kelly has been a solid hitter in his last three minor-league stops at Double-A Springfield and Triple-A Memphis, so the expectation is that he'll come around while likely serving as Yadier Molina's backup in 2018. Even a slight improvement in his luck at the plate would help matters, as Kelly has been victimized by abnormally low .182 and .207 BABIPs in his first two regular-season stints.

Smith was sent to the Dodgers' minor-league camp Monday, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Smith's bat was fairly quiet this spring, as he went 3-for-14 (.214) at the plate and struck out five times. He figures to spend much of the 2018 season at Double-A Tulsa, as a hand injury limited him to just one game there following his promotion from High-A Rancho Cucamonga last season.

Grandal went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and five total RBI in Sunday's spring win over the Rockies.

It was the switch-hitting catcher's third homer of the exhibition campaign, including one against a southpaw, who he has historically struggled against in his career. The Athletic reports that Grandal was tweaking his swing in an effort to increase his launch angle -- and in turn, increase his power output. Grandal was one of just six major-league catchers to reach the 20-homer plateau last season, and he appears poised to post another as long as he can stay ahead of Austin Barnes on the depth chart this year.