MLB Player News

Kirk (hip) hit and played catch Friday, but he is not yet running, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

According to Zwelling, the Jays hope Kirk will continue to make progress through the weekend, so it seems like he is day-to-day at best, and perhaps several days away from a return. Danny Jansen is starting behind the dish.

Delay isn't in the lineup Friday against the Mets, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

Delay hasn't recorded a hit since Sunday and will sit out Friday's game in favor of Tyler Heineman, who will bat ninth.

Kirk (hip) isn't starting Friday against the Orioles, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Kirk has been dealing with left hip tightness recently and will be out of the lineup for a third consecutive game. He remains day-to-day for now. Teoscar Hernandez will serve as the designated hitter and bat cleanup, with Danny Jansen behind the plate and batting eighth.

McCann will sit Friday against the Pirates.

McCann remains atop the Mets' depth chart at catcher, but he and Friday's starter Tomas Nido have generally alternated turns behind the plate in recent weeks. McCann's .549 OPS on the season gives him minimal fantasy value even if he found himself in the lineup more consistently.

Hedges isn't in the lineup Friday against Minnesota.

Hedges is getting a breather after he went 0-for-6 with two strikeouts over the last two games. Luke Maile will start behind the dish and bat eighth.

Wong isn't starting Friday against the Royals, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Wong saw a slight uptick in playing time in early September, but he'll be out of the lineup for the third time in the last five games. Kevin Plawecki is starting behind the plate and batting ninth.

Rodriguez has slashed .357/.438/.696 with eight home runs, 14 doubles and 32 RBI through 29 games since his promotion to Double-A Altoona.

After crushing the ball to the tune of a .936 OPS in High-A, Rodriguez is sitting on a 1.134 mark at the higher level -- and, just as impressively, he's actually clipped his strikeout rate and raised his walk rate since the promotion. As a switch-hitting catcher who's flashing high-end contact ability and power as well as strong defensive ability, he's quickly grown into a must-roster prospect in dynasty formats. It's also possible the Pirates will move him off catcher, as he's seen significant time at second base and in left field and looked good at both positions. His bat will play anywhere.

Contreras (ankle) recently began doing light agility work in his running progression, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Contreras has been on the injured list with a left ankle sprain since Sept. 6 and will spend more than the minimum of 10 days on the shelf. While the catcher seems to be trending in the right direction, manager David Ross said Friday that Contreras is still progressing relatively slowly and is likely about a week away from returning, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Diaz isn't in the lineup Friday against the Cubs.

Diaz has gone 7-for-16 with two home runs, a double, eight RBI and four runs over his last four games but will head to the bench for the third time in the last four matchups. Brian Serven is starting behind the plate and batting ninth.

Murphy went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple and a run in a loss to the Astros on Thursday.

If it seems like all Murphy does is pile up extra-base knocks, it's because that qualifies as only a modest embellishment. The slugging backstop has been putting the screws to the ball all season, with Thursday's production pushing him up to 53 total extra-base hits -- 33 doubles, two triples and 18 home runs. Murphy also has a trio of multi-hit efforts in the last six games, a stretch during which he carries a .292 batting average and .870 OPS across 27 plate appearances.