MLB Player News

Barnhart is not starting Monday against Milwaukee.

Barnhart has started 10 of 16 games behind the plate in September. Curt Casali will get the call for Monday's game.

Mejia went 1-for-4 with a grand slam in Sunday's 7-3 win over the Rangers.

Mejia's first career grand slam capped off a five-run ninth inning that sent the fans in San Diego home happy. The 22-year-old has provided some thump since joining the majors this month, slashing .259/.333/.630 in 29 plate appearances. Manager Andy Green has stayed true to his word, splitting playing time between Mejia and Austin Hedges evenly. It will be interesting to see how the Padres' catching situation unfolds next season, as Mejia possesses tremendous offensive upside at the shallow position.

McGuire went 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored Sunday in the win over New York.

McGuire plated a run in the third inning to get Toronto on the board, and they'd rally for two runs in the eighth to take the series finale. He's gone 4-for-13 with two doubles, an RBI, a walk and a stolen base in six games since joining the big-league club Sept. 6 from Triple-A Buffalo.

Hedges is not in the lineup Sunday against the Rangers.

Hedges and top catching prospect Francisco Mejia have been sharing catching duties pretty evenly over the past couple weeks, and on Sunday, Hedges will watch from the bench. Hedges has been hot as of late, though, producing a .987 OPS over the past 14 games.

Diaz (hamstring) caught a bullpen session Saturday and could return to action as soon as this week, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports.

Diaz has been out since late August due to hamstring discomfort, but it seems like he's finally turning a corner in his recovery process. With the expanded rosters in September, Diaz can return to the roster easily, but his playing time may not be plentiful with Francisco Cervelli handling starting duties while Jacob Stallings and Ryan Lavarnway also compete for playing time as backups. Diaz still seems like the clear No. 2, but with the Pirates' playoff chances becoming slimmer and slimmer, the team may not force the 27-year-old backstop to play too much after missing over two weeks of action.

Garver (head) remains on the bench Sunday against the Royals.

Garver will miss his fourth straight game after taking a foul ball off his mask on Wednesday. He reportedly avoided a concussion, but the Twins will remain careful with him. Chris Gimenez starts behind the plate in his place.

Perez is out of the lineup for the second straight day Sunday against the Twins.

The catcher's typically heavy workload has been significantly reduced in September. Since returning from a thumb injury Sept. 7, he's started just five of 10 games. Meibrys Viloria will start behind the plate Sunday.

McCann is not starting Sunday against Cleveland.

McCann is in the middle of his worst season at the plate, hitting just .219/.266/.317, but he's nevertheless started nine of 14 games in the month of September. Grayson Greiner gets the call behind the plate Sunday.

Jansen is not in the lineup Sunday against the Yankees.

Jansen has the most starts out of Blue Jays' catchers in the month of September but has still started just seven of 15 games. Reese McGuire gets the call behind the plate Sunday.

Realmuto is not in the lineup Sunday against the Phillies, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

Realmuto caught each of the past five days but only went 2-for-16 in that span. He'll get a day off to rest Sunday, allowing Bryan Holaday to slide in for a turn behind the plate.