MLB Player News

Manager Dave Roberts said Smith is being held out of the lineup Tuesday against the Pirates due to a right pectoral injury, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Roberts noted that the Dodgers are just exercising extra caution with Smith, who will give way to Austin Barnes at catcher for the second straight game. The Dodgers are optimistic that Smith will be able to return to the lineup for Wednesday's series finale in Pittsburgh or Thursday's series opener against the Phillies.

Barnhart will sit for the second half of Tuesday's doubleheader against Oakland.

Barnhart went 2-for-4 in the first game of the day. Eric Haase will take over behind the plate in the second game, catching for Alex Faedo.

Ruiz is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Mets.

Ruiz sat out Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Angels and is on the bench again after Monday's team off day. The Nationals haven't confirmed that Ruiz is dealing with an injury, but in any case, Riley Adams will replace him behind the plate.

Triple-A Salt Lake placed Thaiss on the 7-day injured list Tuesday due to an unspecified issue.

Outfielder Orlando Martinez was called up from Double-A Rocket City to replace Thaiss on the Triple-A roster. Thaiss has hit .226 with three home runs and three stolen bases across 70 plate appearances at Salt Lake this season.

Collins remains on the bench for the third straight game Tuesday against the Yankees.

Collins has had a regular role at times this season but may be falling out of favor. He still owns a 115 wRC+ through 15 games, the product of a .222/.288/.444 slash line, but his 39.0 percent strikeout rate casts doubt on how long he'll be able to remain effective. Alejandro Kirk will be the designated hitter Tuesday, with Tyler Heineman starting behind the plate.

Smith is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Pirates, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Considering that Smith is the Dodgers' clear No. 1 catcher and is now out of the lineup for the second game in a row, he's most likely dealing with an unreported injury or illness. Manager Dave Roberts should provide more clarity on the situation later Tuesday, but Austin Barnes will pick up another start in place of Smith.

Narvaez is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Reds.

Narvaez is getting a routine breather after he played all nine innings behind the plate in losses Sunday in Atlanta and Monday in Cincinnati. Victor Caratini will serve as the Brewers' starting catcher in place of Narvaez on Tuesday.

Perez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Monday against the Dodgers.

Perez started behind the plate for the second consecutive day, even with lefty Julio Urias on the mound. Perez ended the southpaw's outing with his second home run of the season -- and second in as many days -- to lead off the seventh inning. He should continue to see significant playing time with Roberto Perez (hamstring) sidelined, though Andrew Knapp will also see plate appearances.

Heim batted cleanup and went 1-for-3 with a walk in Monday's 1-0 loss to the Yankees.

This marked the second time in three games Heim batted fourth, both times coming against left-handers. He's the team's surprising leader in slugging (.634), but It's unclear if this most recent placement in the order is permanent. It could be the result of a condensed three games in a 30-hour stretch, during which manager Chris Woodward gave others a breather. What is known is that Heim is 7-for-13 with a 1.077 slugging percentage against southpaws to start the season.

Contreras went 3-for-4 with a run scored in Monday's win over the Padres.

All three hits were singles, but fantasy managers aren't complaining about the recent hot stretch by Contreras. He's gone 9-for-21 over his last six games, which has raised his batting average for the year to .279. If that holds up, it would be the highest mark for the catcher since he batted .282 during his 2016 rookie season.