MLB Player News

The Astros recalled Stubbs from their alternate training site Tuesday ahead of the team's wild-card opener against the Twins.

Stubbs will serve as Houston's third catcher during the postseason, providing depth behind Martin Maldonado and Dustin Garneau. The 27-year-old appeared in 14 games during the regular season, going 1-for-8 at the dish.

Garver is not in the lineup for the first game of the AL Wild Card Round against the Astros on Tuesday.

Garver finished the year with a very disappointing .167/.247/.264 slash line in 23 games. Ryan Jeffers will start behind the plate, catching Kenta Maeda.

McGuire will be on the Blue Jays' roster for the AL Wild Card Round against the Rays.

McGuire is likely to be little more than an insurance policy, as he'll be the third catcher behind Danny Jansen and Alejandro Kirk. The Blue Jays will likely be hoping he doesn't have to see the field, as he hit just .073/.073/.146 in 45 plate appearances this season.

Sanchez won't start Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series, Marly Rivera of ESPN.com reports.

With Gerrit Cole taking the mound for the Yankees to begin the series, Kyle Higashioka will serve as his catcher as he's done during much of the regular season. However, Sanchez should be available off the bench and during the remainder of the series.

Murphy (foot) is expected back at full health next season and should operate in a timeshare with Luis Torrens (back) behind the dish, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

Murphy was shut down for good in mid-September after it become evident he would not be able to return from the broken bone he suffered in his left foot during summer camp. The veteran backstop should be back to full health by the time spring training rolls around, but he isn't likely to be ticketed for the high-volume role he was projected to fill in 2020; Torrens, acquired from the Padres at the trade deadline, performed well in a limited sample with the Mariners and figures to see a solid share of playing time in his own right next season.

The Pirates placed Stallings on the 7-day concussion injured list Sunday.

Stallings isn't believed to have a lengthy history of concussions, so the expectation is that he'll be fully cleared to resume baseball activities early in the offseason. He'll wrap up the 2019 campaign with a .248/.326/.376 slash line with three home runs and 18 RBI across 143 plate appearances over 42 games.

D'Arnaud is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Red Sox.

The Braves' spot in the postseason has been solidified for some time, so manager Brian Snitker has taken to rotating starts between d'Arnaud and Tyler Flowers over the final week of the regular season. Expect d'Arnuad to be ready to catch nearly every game of the playoffs after he was one of the majors' top backstops in 2020. Over 44 games spanning 184 plate appearances, d'Arnaud slashed .321/.386/.533.

Smith went 2-for-3 with a home run, two runs, two RBI and a walk in a victory versus the Angels on Saturday.

Smith knocked in a run with a single in the first inning and capped the Dodgers' scoring in the eighth with a solo homer to left field. The backstop has enjoyed a strong second major-league campaign, slashing .300/.414/.600 with eight homers and 25 RBI.

Maldonado is not in the lineup Sunday against the Rangers, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Maldonado is on the bench for the second straight game as the Astros give him some extra rest heading into the playoffs. Dustin Garneau starts behind the plate Sunday, batting ninth.

The Cubs scratched Contreras from the starting lineup for Sunday's game against the White Sox, Russell Dorsey of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Contreras was in line to serve as Chicago's designated hitter in the regular-season finale, but those duties will now fall to Javier Baez instead. Manager David Ross noted that nothing is physically wrong with Contreras; the skipper just decided that he wanted to get Baez some more at-bats heading into the postseason.