MLB Player News

Heineman (back) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Brewers.

Brandon Valenzuela will draw a fifth consecutive start at catcher while Heineman recovers from back spasms, but the Blue Jays' willingness to use Heineman off the bench in Tuesday's 9-7 extra-inning win suggests that he could soon be ready to catch a full game. Heineman caught the final three innings of Tuesday's contest and flied out in his lone at-bat.

Ballesteros is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.

Ballesteros had served as the Cubs' designated hitter in six of the past seven games but will be riding pine Wednesday while the Phillies send a tough lefty (Jesus Luzardo) to the hill. Seiya Suzuki will get a day off from playing the outfield and will draw the start at DH in the series finale.

Kelly is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.

Miguel Amaya will step in behind the plate for Kelly, who will be rested after making starts each of the past three days. Kelly is off to a scorching start to April, having recorded a hit in each of his starts while slashing .364/.488/.545 in 10 games overall.

Ramirez is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game in Atlanta.

Ramirez will be getting just his second day off of the season, as he's been busy between catching and designated-hitter duties. Liam Hicks will start behind the plate and bat cleanup for the Marlins on Wednesday.

Fortes is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's tilt versus the White Sox.

Fortes has been the Rays' primary catcher this season, but he will get a breather Wednesday in the second contest of a three-game set. Hunter Feduccia is behind the dish and batting eighth for Tampa Bay.

Quero is not in the lineup for Wednesday's contest versus the Rays.

Quero started at catcher in each of the last two games but will get a breather Wednesday. Reese McGuire is handling the catching duties and batting eighth for the White Sox.

Bailey is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Reds, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

After starting behind the dish in 13 of the Giants' first 15 games, Bailey will now take a seat for the second time in three contests. Rookie Daniel Susac will draw the start at catcher Wednesday, but Bailey will presumably check back into the lineup for Thursday's series finale.

Dingler is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.

He'll be getting a routine day off after starting behind the plate in each of the Tigers' last four games. Jake Rogers will handle catching duties for Detroit while Dingler rests.

McCann is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles.

Even though top backstop Gabriel Moreno (oblique) last played Friday before landing on the injured list, McCann hasn't taken over as the Orioles' primary catcher. Instead, McCann has shared the job with Adrian Del Castillo, who has made three starts to McCann's two over the last five games. Arizona also has Aramis Garcia on hand as a third option behind the plate, which lessens the Diamondbacks' need to lean heavily on any catcher for the duration of Moreno's absence.

Murphy (hip) played four innings at catcher for High-A Rome on Tuesday, going 0-for-2 at the plate.

The veteran backstop had to delay the start of his rehab assignment while he attended to a family situation, but Murphy finally got back onto the field Tuesday. He underwent hip surgery in September, and while Murphy will be ramped up slowly as he completes the final stages of his recovery, he's still on track to make his season debut with Atlanta before the end of the month.