MLB Player News
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Patrick Bailey C | CLE
Guardians' Patrick Bailey: Taking seat Monday
Bailey is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Angels.
David Fry will get the nod at catcher over Bailey, who went 0-for-3 at the dish in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Twins in his Guardians debut. Bailey is expected to see the lion's share of the playing time behind the dish with his new club, but the 26-year-old backstop likely won't carry much fantasy appeal outside of two-catcher mixed leagues or AL-only leagues. He's batting just .141/.207/.176 on the season, with his .383 OPS placing him last among all catchers who have logged at least 70 plate appearances.
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Jancel Villarroel C | HOU
Giants' Jancel Villarroel: Slow start after return
Villarroel (knee) is slashing .067/.176/.067 with a 1:4 BB:K across 17 plate appearances in four outings with High-A Eugene this season.
Villarroel briefly played in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League before joining Eugene, which placed him on the 7-day injured list April 3 following offseason meniscus surgery. The 21-year-old catcher has struggled since moving to High-A, going hitless in his first three appearances before logging a single in Sunday's 13-8 win over Vancouver.
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Rainiel Rodriguez C | STL
Cardinals' Rainiel Rodriguez: Moving up to Double-A
The Cardinals promoted Rodriguez from High-A Peoria to Double-A Springfield on Monday, Rob Rains of StLSportsPage.com reports.
Rodriguez is only 19 but needs a new challenge after slashing .311/.430/.519 with four home runs and a 19:24 BB:K over 28 games with Peoria. The top prospect has continued to primarily play catcher this season (16 starts), but he's also been worked in at first base (six starts) and designated hitter (six starts). A permanent move off catcher could speed up Rodriguez's timeline for reaching the big leagues, though there's no indication at this point that the Cardinals are considering such a decision.
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Bo Naylor C | CLE
Guardians' Bo Naylor: Heading to Arizona before Triple-A
Naylor will report to the Guardians' spring training complex in Arizona before joining Triple-A Columbus, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.
Naylor, who was optioned to Columbus on Saturday, will get a reset in Arizona away from the daily rigors of game activity. Barring an injury to Patrick Bailey or Austin Hedges in Cleveland, Naylor faces a difficult path back to the majors.
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Patrick Bailey C | CLE
Guardians' Patrick Bailey: Makes club debut
Bailey went 0-for-3 in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Twins.
Bailey, who was acquired from the Giants on Saturday, made his debut for the Guardians a day later. He'll take the lead on the depth chart at catcher ahead of Austin Hedges. Bailey, a two-time Gold Glove winner, likely won't offer much with the bat and is hitting .141 with five RBI over 31 games on the season.
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Drake Baldwin C | ATL
Braves' Drake Baldwin: Reaches 10-homer mark
Baldwin went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 7-2 win over the Dodgers.
This was Baldwin's 10th homer of the season, three of which have come in May. He's batting .257 (9-for-35) this month, and he's added a 6:11 BB:K over that nine-game sample. Baldwin has cooled off a bit after starting the season at a blistering pace, but he's still providing high-quality performances for a catcher. Overall, he's batting .297 with an .892 OPS, 32 RBI, 35 runs scored and a stolen base across 41 contests. Baldwin could see more time behind the dish if Sean Murphy (finger) misses time after exiting Sunday's game early.
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Sean Murphy C | ATL
Braves' Sean Murphy: Gets X-ray on finger
Murphy got an X-ray on his finger following Sunday's 7-2 win over the Dodgers, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.
Murphy was hurt when he was clipped by a Hyeseong Kim swing in the seventh inning on a play that was deemed catcher interference. The backstop remained in the contest until he was pinch-hit for in the ninth, and Drake Baldwin took over behind the plate in the bottom of that frame. Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said after the contest that he thinks Murphy will be fine, though the skipper didn't share the results of the X-ray.
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Willson Contreras 1B | BOS
Red Sox's Willson Contreras: Initial scan negative
Contreras' bruised right hand is sore after being hit by a pitch during Sunday's 4-1 loss to the Rays, but the initial scan of the area come back negative, Ari Alexander of 7 News Boston reports.
Interim manager Chad Tracy didn't offer specifics, but the veteran first baseman likely underwent an X-ray. Contreras will have Monday's team off day to aid in his recovery ahead of Tuesday's series opener versus Philadelphia.
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Salvador Perez C | KC
Royals' Salvador Perez: Receiving evening off
Perez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Tigers.
Perez hasn't started a game behind the plate since May 1 while he's been managing a sore hip, but he's remained in the everyday lineup at designated hitter or first base. He doesn't seem to be dealing with any sort of setback, but Perez will get a break for the series finale after going hitless in 13 at-bats over his last four starts. Carter Jensen will handle DH duties Sunday.
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Kyle Teel C | CHW
White Sox's Kyle Teel: Starting rehab assignment
Teel (hamstring) will report to Triple-A Charlotte on Tuesday to begin a rehab assignment, LaMond Pope of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Teel progressed to running the bases this weekend, which was the final step of his rehab program before being cleared for game action. The 24-year-old has been sidelined two months due to a Grade 2 right hamstring strain, so he'll likely need at least a handful of games in the minors to get up to speed before being activated by the White Sox.