MLB Player News

Mejia is not in the starting lineup Tuesday versus the Angels, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Mejia will get a breather after he went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in Monday's series opener. Christian Bethancourt will take over at catcher and bat eighth against Los Angeles.

Bart is on the bench for Tuesday's game against the Tigers, Evan Webeck of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Bart has struck out multiple times in consecutive games and 11 times in his last 31 at-bats, although he has a respectable .772 OPS in that 10-game span. Austin Wynns is handling catching duties Tuesday.

Godoy cleared waivers Tuesday and was assigned to Triple-A Indianapolis, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

He'll stick around in the Pittsburgh organization after getting outrighted off the 40-man roster over the weekend. After being claimed off waivers from the Twins earlier this month, Godoy went 0-for-7 with an RBI across five games with Pittsburgh.

Trevino isn't starting Tuesday's game against the Mets.

An 0-for-4 performance in Monday's series opener has Trevino hitting .286 with one double, one walk and no RBI in his last 10 games. Kyle Higashioka will catch Tuesday.

Plawecki will start at catcher and bat ninth in Tuesday's game against the Blue Jays, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

Plawecki appeared to have fallen into the No. 2 role at catcher by the middle of last week, but he'll now pick up his third consecutive start behind the dish while Reese McGuire remains on the bench. Manager Alex Cora appears to be rewarding Plawecki with more playing time after he concluded the weekend series with the Orioles by going 3-for-6 with a run over the final two games.

McGuire is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Blue Jays, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

McGuire looks to have moved back into the No. 2 catcher role, as he'll be on the bench for the third straight game while Kevin Plawecki picks up another turn behind the plate. Though he's gotten off to a hot start offensively since being acquired from the White Sox on Aug. 2 -- McGuire is hitting .375 with four runs and three RBI in 11 games -- his track record at the big-league level suggests he's unlikely to be much of a fantasy asset if he eventually supplants Plawecki as the No. 1 option.

Barnhart is not in the starting lineup Tuesday versus the Giants.

Barnhart will take a seat after he went 1-for-8 with a run scored in the final two games of the Angels series. Eric Haase will take over behind the plate and bat fourth in the series opener.

Maldonado's $4.5 million team option for 2023 vested Sunday after he appeared in his 90th game of the season, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The $4.5 million price tag is somewhat steep if Maldonado were to move into a backup role in 2023, but the Astros have thus far shown no inclination to reduce the 36-year-old's playing time, even after acquiring fellow catcher Christian Vazquez from Boston earlier this month. With Vazquez headed to free agency this offseason and likely to command a bigger contract than the Astros may be willing to pay, Maldonado could be poised to enter next season atop the depth chart. Though Maldonado owns a lowly .181 batting average and .245 on-base percentage for the season, he's popped 12 home runs and receives high praise for his game calling, pitch framing and ability to control the running game.

Contreras is out of the lineup for the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader with the Cardinals.

Yan Gomes will be behind the dish for the opening game of the day while Contreras gets a breather. Expect Contreras to check in at catcher for the nightcap.

Jeffers (thumb) is scheduled to receive additional X-rays Monday and could be cleared to start catching bullpen sessions as soon as Friday, MLB.com reports.

Jeffers has been sidelined since undergoing surgery July 20 to repair an avulsion fracture in the joint of the thumb on his throwing hand. Assuming he's able to catch some side sessions this weekend without incident, Jeffers plans to head to the Twins' spring complex in Florida next week to continue his rehab program. He's hopeful that he'll be ready to start a minor-league rehab assignment in the middle of September before returning from the 10-day injured list before the end of the month, which would allow him to get a few games under his belt prior to a potential playoff run. In the meantime, the Twins are expected to get by with a timeshare of Gary Sanchez and Sandy Leon at catcher.