MLB Player News

Smith went 3-for-3 with a solo home run Friday in a loss to the Rockies.

Smith tallied half of the Dodgers' six hits in the contest, and his third-inning solo homer gave the team its first run of the game. The catcher has gone deep in each of his past three contests, going 6-for-12 with three RBI and a stolen base over that span. He leads National League backstops with 21 homers on the season.

Diaz went 2-for-4 with a solo home run against the Dodgers in Friday's 4-2 victory.

The catcher provided some late-game insurance for Colorado with his solo shot in the ninth inning. The homer was his 15th of the campaign, placing him fourth among National League backstops. Diaz entered the season with 15 combined homers across 817 career at-bats.

Grandal went 4-for-6 with two home runs, a double and eight RBI in Friday's 17-13 win over the Cubs.

The catcher missed nearly two months while recovering from knee surgery, and he seemed to want to make up for it all at once. Grandal hit three-run blasts in the third and eighth innings while adding a two-run double in the fifth to account for nearly half of the White Sox's run production. The huge game lifted his season slash line to .203/.394/.481 with 16 homers, 46 RBI, 44 runs scored and four doubles through 252 plate appearances.

Stallings went 3-for-4 with a run scored in a 4-3 loss to the Cardinals on Friday.

After not appearing in Thursday's lineup, Stallings returned Friday collecting three hits, all of which were singles. The 31-year-old catcher has now collected a hit in five of his last six games, three of which were multi-hit outings.

Contreras (knee) will likely require a rehab assignment before he's reinstated from the 10-day injured list, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Contreras has been going through his full pregame routine recently, but the Cubs will likely choose to give him at-bats in the minors before he rejoins the major-league club. He's unlikely to require many rehab appearances, but the team will be able to use him as a designated hitter if he returns during the current road trip.

Bart (quadriceps) was activated from the 7-day injured list at Triple-A Sacramento on Friday, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

The backstop has regained his health after a strained quad sidelined him since Aug. 6. His recent absence could hurt his chances of being called up when rosters expand to 28 next Wednesday, but his .320/.383/.541 slash line at Sacramento should keep in the mix for a promotion by season's end.

Sanchez is not starting Friday against the Athletics.

Sanchez will get his first breather since last Saturday after going 1-for-3 with a walk in Thursday's win. Kyle Higashioka is set to catch Gerrit Cole and bat ninth.

Jeffers (heel) is starting Friday's game against the Brewers.

Jeffers sustained a heel injury against the Red Sox on Thursday, but he'll start behind the plate and bat sixth Friday. As long as his injury doesn't linger, the 24-year-old will take over as the team's primary catcher while Mitch Garver (back) is on the 10-day injured list.

Garver was placed on the 10-day injured list with a lower back strain Friday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Garver had missed five of the last seven games due to a back injury, and he'll have additional time to recover on the 10-day IL. Ryan Jeffers (heel) is in line to serve as the primary catcher, while Willians Astudillo will be available in a depth role.

Marchan was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday.

Marchan was sent to the minors in early August, and he hit .172 with two doubles, eight runs and seven RBI in 17 games at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He'll serve as depth at catcher after Andrew Knapp (undisclosed) was placed on the COVID-19 IL on Friday.