MLB Player News

Smith went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk Sunday in the Dodgers' 3-2 win over the Rockies.

After getting the day off Saturday, Smith checked back into the lineup for the series finale and provided the decisive hit of the afternoon, taking reliever Carlos Estevez deep to center field in the eighth inning to break a 2-2 tie. The home run was the 14th of the season for Smith, leaving him one shy of matching the career-best total he supplied as a rookie in 2019.

Knizner went 1-for-2 with a double, three walks and a run in a win over the Reds on Sunday.

Knizner drew another start for Yadier Molina (neck) and was a thorn in the side of Reds pitching all afternoon long. The reserve backstop has taken advantage of his current three-game stretch behind the dish in Molina's stead, going 3-for-7 with two doubles, two RBI, six walks and two runs over that span.

Murphy went 2-for-3 with a pair of singles, a walk and an RBI in Sunday's 4-3 win over the Athletics.

Murphy finished off the Mariners' four-run third inning with a Texas Leaguer that fell in just in front of a diving Ramon Laureano for an RBI single. The 30-year-old backstop was productive in both of his starts during the series with Oakland, as he also mashed his eighth home run of the season Thursday. Rookie Cal Raleigh still appears to top the depth chart at catcher ahead of Murphy, who likely can't be counted on to receive more than two or three starts per week.

Perez went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run in Sunday's 6-1 win over Detroit.

The catcher opened the scoring with his first-inning blast off Detroit starter Tarik Skubal. Perez has homered in back-to-back games for the fourth time this season. He's up to 23 long balls, 62 RBI, 45 runs scored and a stolen base while maintaining a .279/.309/.505 slash line through 398 plate appearances.

Stassi went 3-for-4 with a home run, a triple and three RBI in Sunday's 6-2 win over the Twins.

Stassi slammed a solo home run in the fifth inning off Bailey Ober. Prior to Sunday, Stassi was batting just .167 over his last seven days. He nearly doubled his weekly hit total, reaching base safely three times. The catcher is slashing .299/.377/.526 with eight long balls, 20 RBI and 28 runs scored in 154 plate appearances.

Nationals manager Dave Martinez said Sunday that Gomes (oblique) was able to do some baserunning work and jogging out of the batter's box, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.

The activity marks another step forward in the rehab process for Gomes, who is on the mend from a left calf strain. If he continues to increase the intensity of his workouts in the next few days, he could be cleared to begin a minor-league rehab assignment by the end of the week. With Alex Avila (calves) also currently on the shelf, Tres Barrera has taken over as Washington's No. 1 catcher.

Stephenson went 3-for-3 with a pair of walks, an RBI and a run scored in Sunday's 10-6 loss to St. Louis.

The catcher has recorded multiple hits in four of his last six starts, although the other two games in that sample were 0-fers. All three of Stephenson's hits Sunday were singles. The 24-year-old is slashing .288/.378/.419 with five home runs, 27 RBI and 39 runs scored across 251 plate appearances. He remains the favorite for playing time behind the dish versus left-handed pitching, but he has drawn starts four times versus right-handers in the last eight games.

Sanchez (back) went 1-for-4 with a triple and a run scored in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Red Sox.

In the eighth inning, Sanchez hit just the second triple of his major-league career before he scored on a Gleyber Torres single. Sanchez ended up missing just one game after dealing with back spasms. The catcher is slashing .219/.333/.470 with 17 home runs, 37 RBI, 40 runs scored and 10 doubles in 294 plate appearances.

Collins is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Brewers.

Collins will receive a breather after he started in each of the White Sox's past five games, catching in four of them while serving as a designated hitter in the other. Seby Zavala will get a turn behind the dish in Collins' stead.

Perez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Giants.

Perez has rewarded the Pirates with three extra-base hits (one triple, two doubles) between his last two starts, but he remains Pittsburgh's clear No. 2 catcher behind Jacob Stallings. Stallings will be in the lineup for the sixth time since the All-Star break, while Perez has picked up only three starts over the same stretch.