MLB Player News

Murphy will start at catcher and bat ninth in Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.

Though he's produced a poor .167/.194/.200 slash line over 31 plate appearances since coming back from the 60-day injured list Aug. 3, Murphy will stick in the starting nine for a third straight game. The veteran backstop's strong defense appears to be fueling his playing time more than anything he's done with the bat.

Diaz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Yankees.

Diaz will get a breather Wednesday, one night after turning in one of his best performances of the season. He was the star of Tuesday's 9-7 win, going 3-for-4 with two home runs, one walk, three RBI and an additional run. Christian Vazquez will get the nod behind the plate in Diaz's stead.

Rodriguez underwent surgery Wednesday to repair the labrum in his left hip, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

Rodriguez is expected to resume baseball activities in 7-to-9 months, ruling him out for the rest of 2026 and likely the early portion of the 2027 campaign as well. The 26-year-old will finish the season with a .267/.373/.467 slash line alongside seven homers, 20 RBI, 20 runs scored and six steals across 158 plate appearances in the majors. With Rodriguez out, Rafael Flores and Henry Davis figure to split starts behind the plate for the rest of the season.

Ruiz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rockies.

Ruiz will take a seat for the second straight game while the Nationals go with Harry Ford behind the plate. Despite Ruiz's consecutive absences, the playing time at catcher still seems to be tilting in his favor while he's produced a superb .346/.424/.423 batting line since the start of August.

Sullivan is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Nationals.

Sullivan will hit the bench for a second straight game, as he's faded back to the second spot on the Rockies' catching depth chart with All-Star Hunter Goodman returning from the injured list Tuesday. While Goodman was out of the lineup for a stretch of 10 consecutive games from Aug. 14 through Monday, Sullivan made eight starts and went 5-for-29 (.172 average) with one home run, five RBI and four runs.

Rutschman (elbow) remains out of the lineup for Wednesday's game in Miami.

Rutschman will miss a second straight start after he hyperextended his right elbow on a swing Monday. With a team off day Thursday and the Yankees on the docket this weekend, Rutschman will get some extra rest before likely returning to action Friday. Connor Wong will start behind the dish in the series finale Wednesday.

Moreno is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.

James McCann will get the starting nod behind the plate while Moreno receives a breather for Wednesday's matinee. Moreno has been one of the top fantasy catchers this season, leading all qualified players at the position with a .303 average while also adding 10 home runs, 65 RBI, 56 runs and five stolen bases.

Smith (neck) went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run Tuesday in a minor-league rehab appearance with Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Smith logged his first game action since landing on the IL in early June due to a neck injury. The All-Star backstop went hitless in his first two plate appearances Tuesday before slugging a two-run homer to left field in the fifth inning. Smith caught five frames before exiting, hitting the target that was set for him going into the contest. He's expected to play a handful of additional games in the minors before potentially returning to the big-league club at the start of September.

Bailey is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Angels, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.

Bailey will receive a breather for the matinee after he went 0-for-1 with four walks and a run scored while catching all 10 innings of an 8-6 win Tuesday night. Austin Hedges will spell Bailey behind the dish in the series finale.

Fermin will start at catcher and will bat ninth in Wednesday's game against the Pirates.

The start for Fermin marks his fourth over the last six contests, as he may have inched back ahead of Luis Campusano in the Padres' catcher pecking order. Fermin is slashing .312/.323/.426 so far in the second half, though he's hit only one home run across 23 games.