MLB Player News

Monell was designated for assignment by the Mets on Friday.

He was a distant third on the depth chart behind Travis d'Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki. The Mets, having re-signed Bartolo Colon to a one-year deal, decided to bump Monell and will now risk losing him to waivers. Monell has done little with his major-league opportunities thus far, but he has hit .279/.356/.455 in parts of four seasons at Triple-A, making him a serviceable depth piece for an organization.

Sanchez (ankle) signed with the White Sox on Monday, Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish reports.

With the offseason acquisitions of fellow catchers Dioner Navarro and Alex Avila, it's unclear where Sanchez will fit into the mix. He split time between the majors and minors last season, and could be reduced to a similar role with his new club.

Bethancourt (knee) was traded to the Padres on Thursday in exchange for Casey Kelly and Ricardo Rodriguez, MLB.com reports.

The 24-year-old has done little with the bat in 80 games at the major-league level, slashing .219/.245/.283 while walking at a 2.9 percent clip. However, Bethancourt's athleticism and exceptional arm should afford him plenty of opportunities down the line, though there is not a clear path to a 2016 role with Derek Norris, Austin Hedges and Josmil Pinto all in San Diego.

Mesoraco (hip) said Friday that he is "feeling great" and expects to report to spring training as normal, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Hip issues derailed Mesoraco's 2015 season early on, and after a failed attempt to acclimate him to left field, the Reds sent the 27-year-old for surgery. Mesoraco was cleared to resume squatting about a month ago, and he said Friday that he's had no problems getting in and out of the catching position. He will start adding more drills to his routine early next month.

Thole re-signed with the Blue Jays on a one-year, $800,000 deal Friday, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports.

Thole had just been non-tendered by the Blue Jays on Thursday, but he's coming back to the team after being a free agent for just a day. The 29-year-old had a disappointing campaign last season, hitting just .204/.250/.245, but he should get the chance to earn the backup role behind Russell Martin out of spring training.

Thole was not tendered a contract for the 2016 season.

After a frustrating 2015 season for Thole in which he rode the shuttle between the minors and the majors, the catcher will not be brought back by the Blue Jays. The 29-year-old will become a free agent in 2016, and he won't be anything more than a backup catcher wherever he ends up.

The Giants declined to tender Sanchez (ankle) a contract for 2016, Andrew Baggarly of the Bay Area News Group reports.

Sanchez was the odd man out of the catching mix with Andrew Susac (wrist) and Trevor Brown emerging as viable options behind Buster Posey. Ankle and hamstring injuries cut Sanchez's 2015 season short, but he was able to avoid another concussion scare after battling head injuries throughout the second half of 2014.

Schlehuber signed a minor league contract with the Braves that includes an invitation to spring training.

Schlehuber reached Triple-A for the first time last season, but struggled mightily at the plate, slashing .158/.224/.193 in a mere 128 plate appearances at that level. With other options at catcher ahead of him, this signing appears to be nothing more than a move for more organizational depth at catcher.

Garcia signed a minor league contract with the Brewers on Friday.

Garcia split time between Double-A and Triple-A in 2015, struggling to just a .245/.260/.265 after the promotion. He'll likely serve as catching depth with the Brewers, but the 25-year-old could see his first stint in the majors at some point during 2016.

Sanchez is well positioned to be the Yankees' backup catcher in 2016 after John Ryan Murphy was traded to the Twins in exchange for Aaron Hicks on Wednesday.

Sanchez has 20-plus homer upside and the arm to stick behind the plate, so if something were to happen to Brian McCann, he could be useful in most formats. The Yankees may opt to keep Sanchez at Triple-A so that he can get regular at-bats, but he should be seen as the No. 2 catcher on the organizational depth chart at this point.