MLB Player News

Contreras remains on the bench for Friday's game against Miami.

Contreras started the final seven games of August, slashing .357/.400/.536 over that stretch. He's now been on the bench for the first two games of September, with Ronald Acuna's knee troubles limiting him to designated hitter duties and Travis d'Arnaud starting behind the plate both times.

Mejia will be on the bench Friday against the Yankees, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Mejia sits after starting two straight games. Christian Bethancourt will take over behind the plate.

Rutschman is not in Friday's lineup against the Athletics, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.

Rutschman has cooled off a little of late, hitting .212/.323/.375 with three home runs and one steal over his last 80 at-bats. Robinson Chirinos will start behind the dish and bat ninth.

Casali went 1-for-4 with a two-run double and a run in a win over the Tigers on Thursday.

Casali's fourth-inning two-bagger brought home J.P. Crawford and Sam Haggerty with the fourth and fifth runs of the day for the Mariners. The veteran backstop has only appeared in five games since making his Seattle debut Aug. 14, a sample during which he's hit just .133 (2-for-15).

Amaya (finger) returned to the Double-A Tennessee lineup Tuesday and has started at designated hitter in each of the club's last three games, going 3-for-12 with a double, a walk, an RBI and a run.

Amaya was out of action for nearly two weeks while recovering from a dislocated ring finger on his left hand, but it's apparently no longer an issue for him, at least while swinging a bat. The 23-year-old will be limited to DH duty for Tennessee the rest of the season as he also underwent Tommy John surgery last winter, but the Cubs expect him to resume his duties behind the plate in the Arizona Fall League, per Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Daily Herald.

Langeliers went 2-for-5 with a double, a home run and three RBI on Thursday against the Nationals.

Langeliers led off the fifth inning with his third career homer. Five frames later, he delivered a two-RBI double that gave Oakland a short-lived lead. Entering the game, Langeliers was hitless across his last 13 at-bats with seven strikeouts. In 58 big-league plate appearances, Langeliers has maintained a .232/.241/.518 with a 43.1 percent strikeout rate.

Narvaez isn't starting Thursday against Arizona, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Narvaez started three of the last four games and went 1-for-9 with two runs, an RBI, three walks and a strikeout. He'll get a breather while Victor Caratini takes over at catcher and bats eighth.

Diaz's contract was selected from Triple-A Sugar Land on Thursday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Diaz has been productive at Sugar Land this season but has been particularly dominant at the plate over the last two weeks. He's put together eight multi-hit performances over the last 12 games and has slashed .393/.443/.661 with four home runs, three doubles, 17 runs and 14 RBI over that stretch. The 23-year-old will provide catching depth for the Astros, but he also has experience at first base and the corner-outfield spots.

Sands was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Thursday.

The 26-year-old catcher will make his first appearance in the big leagues as rosters expand to 28 players in September. He's slashed .308/.413/.428 in Triple-A this season and figures to serve as depth behind the plate for Philadelphia.

Contreras is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rockies.

After a recent three-game absence due to soreness in his surgically repaired right knee, Ronald Acuna has been eased back into the lineup the last two days as Atlanta's designated hitter. As a result, Atlanta won't have room in the starting nine for both Contreras and Travis d'Arnaud, who gets the nod behind the plate Thursday. Contreras caught in Wednesday's 3-2 win over Colorado while d'Arnaud sat out, finishing with two base hits in three at-bats to lift his season-long average to .272.