MLB Player News

Diaz went 2-for-4 with two RBI on Saturday against the Mets.

Diaz delivered two timely hits to drive in a pair of runs and help the Rockies to the win. He now has four multi-hit efforts in his last five starts, and he's also collected seven RBI in that span. Diaz has quietly had an excellent start to the season, maintaining a .343 average with three home runs, 18 RBI and 12 runs scored across 110 plate appearances.

Zavala went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Saturday against the Reds.

Zavala picked up a rare start behind the plate and took advantage by slugging his second home run of the season. With Eloy Jimenez (abdomen) sidelined for at least the next month, the White Sox could opt to get Yasmani Grandal more plate appearances as the designated hitter -- in turn opening more playing time for Zavala at catcher. Zavala hasn't dictated that outcome with his performance to this point in the season, as he has just a .179 average and 62 wRC+ across 42 plate appearances.

Smith went 0-for-1 with three walks, a stolen base and a run scored in Saturday's 2-1 win over the Padres.

Smith was effective despite not recording a hit for just the third time in his last nine games. The steal was Smith's first of the season, and he's never swiped more than three bags in a campaign, so he shouldn't be expected to run much. The catcher is slashing a solid .294/.400/.529 with four homers, 15 RBI, 17 runs scored and four doubles through 85 plate appearances.

Fermin went 1-for-4 with a solo homer scored in Saturday's 5-4 loss against the Athletics.

Fermin took Ken Waldichuk yard for a solo home run in the fourth inning, marking his second consecutive game with a home run. However, Fermin was unable to make an impact outside of the solo shot, with a pair of strikeouts and a foul out in his other three plate appearances. Though the 27-year-old remains firmly behind Salvador Perez on the depth chart, he could push Kansas City to play Perez at DH if he continues to hit the ball well.

Knizner will serve as the Cardinals' top catcher for the next few weeks while Willson Contreras spends time at designated hitter and in the outfield, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Contreras has looked good offensively, but the Cardinals are unhappy with his performance on the defensive side and aren't going to use him much, if at all, at catcher for the near future. That opens up considerably more playing time for Knizner, though he's unlikely to do enough with it to have much fantasy value. In 197 career major-league games, he's hit .201/.287/.285 with eight homers.

Lee is dealing with a left groin injury at Triple-A Sugar Land, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

He has missed the last few games with the issue but is not on the minor-league injured list yet. Lee is hitting .265 with one home run in 98 at-bats.

Jansen will be on the bench Saturday against the Pirates.

Jansen has fallen into a slump at the plate, going 2-for-25 over his last seven games. That's brought his season slash line down to .156/.256/.319, a far cry from his .260/.339/.516 showing last season. Alejandro Kirk starts behind the plate Saturday.

Vazquez will sit Saturday against Cleveland, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.

Vazquez sits in favor of Ryan Jeffers after starting seven of the last nine games behind the plate. He hasn't exactly earned such a heavy workload, hitting a modest .237/.310/.276 on the season. If Jeffers can maintain something close to his small-sample .801 OPS, it's possible Vazquez starts to lose playing time, but there's been no indication that's about to happen.

Contreras will spend most of his time in the outfield or at designated hitter over the next couple of weeks, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.

Contreras has been seen as a bat-first catcher throughout his career, but to see the Cardinals go from giving him five years and $87.5 million over the winter to not trusting him at all behind the plate a little over a month into his first season is quite a surprise. His framing numbers have been subpar this season, but presumably that's not a shock to St. Louis, as that's nothing new. It remains to be seen how often he'll play until he regains his team's trust as a catcher, since the Cardinals already have a depth chart crunch in the corner outfield and at designated hitter. Expect Andrew Knizner to see an uptick in playing time behind the plate in the meantime.

Barrera's contract was selected by the Cardinals on Saturday.

Barrera is a 28-year-old backstop with a career .231/.317/.315 slash line in 51 major-league games. The Cardinals didn't send down any catchers as part of the series of moves which accompanied Barrera's call-up, but with the team moving Willson Contreras out from behind the plate for at least the near future, Barrera may serve as Andrew Knizner's backup.