MLB Player News

Stephenson left Thursday's game in the sixth inning with a hamstring cramp, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

The exit was termed precautionary, which makes sense given the initial diagnosis. Assuming Stephenson isn't dealing with anything more serious, he should be back in action soon. Tucker Barnhart replaced Stephenson behind the plate.

Contreras went 1-for-4 with a double, two RBI and a run scored Thursday against the Rockies.

Contreras contributed to a four-run rally for the Cubs in the fifth inning by doubling home two. That his was lone hit of the day, though he tallied a hit in each of the team's three games at Coors Field and collected three RBI and three runs scored. Overall, Contreras is now hitting .233/.341/.430 across 387 plate appearances this season.

D'Arnaud (thumb) is expected to return for the team's upcoming series against Cincinnati, though he hasn't been ruled out for the team's weekend series against Washington, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

D'Arnuad began a rehab assignment July 30 and has since racked up seven at-bats with Triple-A Gwinnett. More importantly, he caught seven innings Tuesday and was scheduled to be behind the plate again Thursday. D'Arnaud's final rehab appearance could come Saturday, as he's currently penciled in to start as Gwinnett's designated hitter, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Smith went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk in Wednesday's 7-5 win over the Astros.

Houston tagged Los Angeles starter Max Scherzer for a run in the top of the first inning, but the Dodgers came storming back with four runs of their own in the bottom of the frame. The big blow was Smith's three-run shot to right field. The long ball was his 15th of the season, tying the career-high mark he set during his rookie 2019 campaign. Among National League catchers, only Willson Contreras has smashed more homers in 2021.

Perez (back) is not in the lineup Thursday against the Blue Jays.

Perez was scratched from Wednesday's starting nine with back spasms, and he'll remain out of the lineup Thursday. Austin Hedges will receive another start behind the plate for Cleveland in his place. The severity of the injury remains unclear, but it shouldn't be considered a serious concern unless a third catcher is added to the big-league roster.

Higashioka will start at catcher and bat eighth Thursday against the Mariners.

For the second straight day, Higashioka will be starting at catcher in place of Gary Sanchez, who was placed on the COVID-19 injured list Thursday after testing positive for the coronavirus. Assuming Sanchez's positive result is confirmed by a lab-based test, he'll be sidelined for at least 10 days, giving Higashioka a week-and-a-half-long run as the Yankees' No. 1 catcher. Higashioka, who tested positive for the virus himself coming out of the All-Star break, is batting .196 with six home runs and 12 RBI across 114 plate appearances on the season.

Manager Aaron Boone said the Yankees will place Sanchez on the COVID-19 injured list Thursday after he tested positive for the coronavirus via rapid test, Brendan Kuty of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.

Boone provided the news of Sanchez's positive test just minutes after he was excluded from the Yankees' lineup released prior to Thursday's game against the Mariners. According to Kuty, Sanchez felt under the weather Wednesday and early Thursday before the positive test result emerged. The Yankees plan to confirm the result with a lab-based test, and if that also returns positive, Sanchez would have to remain on the IL for at least 10 days. The Yankees called up Rob Brantly from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to replace Sanchez on the active roster and provide catching depth behind Kyle Higashioka.

Sanchez is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Mariners.

Sanchez's absence from the lineup is conspicuous, given that he received the day off in Wednesday's 10-3 win over the Orioles. Manager Aaron Boone still felt comfortable enough using Sanchez off the bench, with the 28-year-old going 1-for-1 with a walk and two runs. Unless the Yankees say otherwise, fantasy managers can assume Sanchez is healthy and is just getting some extra maintenance.

Raleigh is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Yankees.

After a string of four consecutive starts behind the dish, Raleigh will remain on the bench for a second straight day while Tom Murphy receives another turn behind the dish. Though Murphy's .654 OPS is more than 200 points below his 2020 mark, he's still threatening Raleigh's status as the Mariners' No. 1 backstop. Since his July 11 call-up from Triple-A Tacoma, Raleigh has slashed .152/.200/.261 while striking out in 32 percent of his plate appearances.

Barnhart is not starting Thursday's game against the Pirates, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Barnhart, who has gone 8-for-38 with four RBI in 12 games since the All-Star break, sits for a second consecutive day. Tyler Stephenson is catching and batting fifth Thursday.