MLB Player News

Grandal is not starting Tuesday against the Marlins.

The catcher is posting excellent numbers so far this season, hitting .275/.385/.500 with six homers in 36 games. He hasn't been as good since the start of May, though, hitting just .161 in 12 games. Austin Barnes will be the Dodgers' catcher Tuesday.

Jansen went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles, a walk and a stolen base for Triple-A Buffalo in its 6-5 loss to Pawtucket on Monday in 10 innings.

Both of Jansen's doubles came off Jalen Beeks, who entered Monday's contest with a 1.72 ERA and 52:8 K:BB in 31.1 innings. Though he has infrequently encountered pitchers of Beeks' high caliber this season, the 23-year-old catcher has nonetheless impressed in his second taste of the International League, just as he did in 2017 following a late callup from Double-A New Hampshire. Through 107 plate appearances on the campaign, Jansen is slashing .311/.406/.478 with 10 extra-base hits and a 3-for-3 success rate on stolen-base attempts.

Vazquez is not in the lineup Monday against Oakland, Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston reports.

Vazquez is hitting a mere .179/.230/.217 on the season, but fellow catcher Sandy Leon, who starts Monday, is hitting just .159/.213/.227, so there's no immediate threat to his job. Blake Swihart is also hanging around, but he's been called on to catch just one inning and is hitting just .160/.250/.200, so he's not much of a threat himself.

Caratini is catching and batting sixth in Monday's game against the Braves.

Caratini is spelling regular catcher Willson Contreras, who is getting a rest day as the Cubs play Monday afternoon. Caratini has played both catcher and first base this season, and manager Joe Maddon indicated that he could play additional positions as the season progresses. Caratini is slashing .283/.333/.340 this year.

Hedges (elbow) reported to the Padres' spring training facility in Arizona and will begin playing in simulated games Monday, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Hedges was cleared to take a step forward in his recovery after a recent MRI confirmed that the catcher wasn't dealing with any structural damage to his right elbow and is merely battling some tendinitis. He'll likely play at least a couple games in Arizona before advancing to a minor-league rehab assignment as soon as the upcoming weekend.

Contreras is not in the lineup Monday against the Braves.

Contreras has been heating up lately, with three homers and a 1.399 OPS over his last six games. After a slow start, he's now hitting .275/.349/.504 on the season, a near match for his .278/.355/.496 career slash line. Victor Caratini will start behind the plate Monday.

Grandal went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 5-3 loss to Cincinnati.

Grandal returned to the lineup after getting Saturday off, and he responded with his sixth long ball of the campaign. The switch-hitting catcher's hot start (.275/.385/.500) has allowed him to escape an expected platoon, with Austin Barnes getting a good portion of his at-bats at the keystone. Grandal remains a mainstay in the heart of a struggling Dodgers lineup, despite getting off to a poor start this month (5-for-31 in May).

Gomes went 4-for-5 with a three-run home run, double, three RBI and three runs scored Sunday against the Royals.

Gomes hit his fifth home run of the season, this one coming off left-hander Danny Duffy. It was his second home run off a left-handed pitcher this season, and though his numbers are down against them as a whole through 33 at-bats this season, he managed to slug .509 against them last season. He remains the primary starter behind the plate for the Indians and is hitting a respectable .266/.343/.479 on the season.

Barnhart is not in the lineup Sunday against the Dodgers, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic Cincinnati reports.

Barnhart has slugged a double in each of the team's past three games, but he'll be afforded the day off against Rich Hill and the Dodgers. Tony Cruz will take over behind the plate, batting seventh.

Mesoraco will serve as the Mets' catcher and bat seventh Sunday against the Phillies, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

The Mets have wasted no time installing Mesoraco as their primary backstop after acquiring him from the Reds on Tuesday. He'll pick up his third consecutive start behind the plate Sunday and should amount to a vast offensive upgrade over Jose Lobaton, who has since settled into the clear backup role.