MLB Player News

Garver isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Royals.

Garver will catch a breather after going 2-for-4 with a two-run homer during Friday's series opener. Jhonny Pereda will pick up a start behind the dish as a result and bat eighth.

Valenzuela isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Pittsburgh.

Valenzuela lost his four-game hitting streak Friday, but he still reached base twice on a pair of walks, scored a run and stole a base en route to a victory. He'll get a chance to rest his legs Saturday while Tyler Heineman starts at catcher.

Narvaez isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Minnesota.

Narvaez will pick out a seat on the bench Saturday after notching a base hit and scoring a run in each of his last two games. While he rests, Connor Wong will start behind home plate and bat eighth.

Vazquez isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Cubs.

Vazquez will get a day off Saturday after going 2-for-4 with a homer and an additional RBI during Friday's win. Cesar Salazar will replace him behind the dish and bat ninth.

Kelly isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Houston.

Kelly will get a breather Saturday after going 3-for-14 with a walk and five strikeouts over his last five games. Miguel Amaya will handle catching duties and bat eighth.

Pages isn't in the lineup for the first game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Reds.

Pages went 3-for-7 with a walk and a run scored during St. Louis' last series against Pittsburgh, but he'll stay put in the dugout to begin Saturday's festivities. Ivan Herrera will handle catching duties in Game 1 while Nolan Gorman works as the DH and Cesar Prieto starts at third base.

Kirk (thumb) will be evaluated by the Blue Jays training staff this weekend as he prepares to take the next step in his rehab, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

The backstop has been catching bullpens and taking live BP at the team's spring training complex in Dunedin. Assuming Kirk's surgically repaired thumb checks out OK, he could be cleared for a rehab assignment. The 27-year-old has been sidelined since April 3, and his return to the big-league lineup appears to be drawing close. Brandon Valenzuela and Tyler Heineman will continue to split duties behind the plate until Kirk is activated from the IL.

Garver went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in Friday's win over the Royals.

Garver's two-run homer was not only all the offense the Mariners produced throughout the game, but they were the lone two runs of the entire game. Garver has been slumping at the plate, though, tallying just four hits across 28 at-bats in 13 games since the beginning of May -- although two of those have left the yard. Expect Garver to handle the majority of the catching reps as long as Cal Raleigh (oblique) remains sidelined, but he's not expected to be a major fantasy contributor as long as he continues to struggle at this rate at the plate. He's hitting just .143 with a .690 OPS in 13 games in May.

Contreras went 3-for-4 with a three-run home run and an additional run scored in Friday's win over the Dodgers.

Contreras made his presence felt early in the game with a three-run shot in the first inning, giving him four long balls on the year. This impressive three-hit performance extended Contreras' hitting streak to seven games, a stretch in which he has four multi-hit efforts while slashing .419/.438/.516 over 32 plate appearances.

Goodman went 2-for-4 with a walk, two stolen bases and one run scored in Friday's 3-2 win over the Diamondbacks.

Goodman entered this contest 0-for-12 with six strikeouts over his last four games. He did significantly better than that and even made a rare contribution on the basepaths, picking up his second and third steals of the year. This is the first time he's logged more than one theft in a season over his four years in the majors. Goodman is batting .242 with a .776 OPS, 11 home runs, 19 RBI, 29 runs scored and eight doubles over 47 contests this season, though his 35.2 percent strikeout rate is likely to continue to hold back his rate stats.