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  • Brewers' William Contreras: Playing through hand injury

    Brewers manager Pat Murphy said Tuesday that Contreras is still dealing with a nagging left hand injury but will be ready to go for the NLDS, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

    Contreras injured the hand on Sept. 20 when he was struck by an opposing hitter's swing. He started only three of the final seven regular-season contests after that and went 0-for-11 with a 1:4 BB:K. However, while Contreras is not 100 percent healthy, he will do his best to play through the injury once the Brewers open up postseason play.

  • Will Smith C | LAD

    Dodgers' Will Smith: Available to pinch hit in WC round

    Smith (hand) will be included on the Dodgers' wild-card roster but available only in a pinch-hitting capacity, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

    Smith has played just one game since Sept. 3 due to a fracture in his right hand but did some live hitting during Monday's team workout without issue. He apparently has not improved enough to catch, at least not on a full-time basis, and with Shohei Ohtani filling the designated-hitter spot, Smith will be used only as a pinch hitter. That leaves Ben Rorvedt and Dalton Rushing to serve as the Dodgers' catchers during the wild-card round.

  • Elias Diaz C | SD

    Padres' Elias Diaz: Held off wild-card roster

    Diaz (oblique) is not on the Padres' wild-card roster.

    Diaz suffered a minor oblique strain during Saturday's game against the Diamondbacks and wasn't able to progress enough to be included on the team's wild-card roster. The Padres will carry three catchers, with Martin Maldonado and Luis Campusano behind starter Freddy Fermin.

  • Bo Naylor C | CLE

    Guardians' Bo Naylor: Taking seat in Game 1

    Naylor is absent from the lineup Tuesday in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series versus the Tigers.

    With lefty ace Tarik Skubal toeing the slab for the Tigers, the left-handed-hitting Naylor will begin the contest on the bench. The Guardians are going with Austin Hedges at catcher Tuesday.

  • Will Smith C | LAD

    Dodgers' Will Smith: Set for another swinging session

    Smith (hand) will take more swings in the batting cage Monday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

    Smith responded well to taking swings in the batting cage Saturday, and if Monday's session goes well, the catcher will face some live pitching Monday night. If the session goes poorly, Smith would likely be ruled out for the Dodgers' upcoming wild-card round series against the Reds beginning Tuesday. In his absence, Ben Rortvedt has been handling the bulk of the workload behind the plate, and he would likely do so if Smith can't give it a go versus Cincinnati.

  • Mets' Francisco Alvarez: Thumb surgery imminent

    Alvarez will undergo surgery in the coming days to repair a sprained UCL in his right thumb, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

    Alvarez suffered the injury in late August, but he elected to delay surgery until the offseason and returned to play in early September. The operation could delay Alvarez's offseason workouts a bit, but it should not affect his availability for the beginning of spring training.

  • Orioles' Adley Rutschman: Viewed as top catcher over Basallo

    Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias said Monday that Rutschman remains "front and center" as the organization's top catcher, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.

    Though Baltimore signed Samuel Basallo to a $67 million extension in August, the 21-year-old is regarded as a bat-first prospect who won't yet be entrusted to handle a full-time catching role in the big leagues. Basallo instead projects to see most of his reps at first base and designated hitter in 2026 while occasionally mixing in behind the plate, so long as Rutschman maintains health. When available this past season, Rutschman continued to provide value defensively, but his offensive production continued its downward trend from his 2022 rookie campaign. Over 365 plate appearances in 2025, Rutschman turned in a .673 OPS and supplied underwhelming counting statistics (nine home runs, zero steals, 37 runs and 29 RBI) in his 90 games. Set to turn 28 in February, Rutschman still has time to regain his prior form at the plate, but investing in him in 2026 fantasy drafts may require some blind faith on the part of fantasy managers.

  • Elias Diaz C | SD

    Padres' Elias Diaz: Nursing oblique strain

    Diaz's status for Tuesday's wild-card series opener versus the Cubs is in question due to a strained oblique, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.

    Diaz tweaked his oblique during Saturday's 12-4 win over the Diamondbacks. The Padres don't believe the injury is serious, but Martin Maldonado and Luis Campusano will travel with the team to Chicago as insurance in case Diaz isn't included on the roster for the wild-card round. Diaz is the clear No. 2 catcher for the Padres behind Freddy Fermin, but he has served as the personal catcher this season for Nick Pivetta, who is slated to start Game 1 of the series.

  • Royals' Carter Jensen: Monster homer in win

    Jensen went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and two additional runs scored in Sunday's victory over the Athletics.

    Jensen capped Sunday's regular-season finale with three hits, highlighted by a towering 482-foot homer in the seventh inning that stretched the lead to six. The young catcher hasn't looked overmatched since his Sept. 2 call-up, batting .300/.391/.550 with six doubles, three homers and 13 RBI across 20 games. Despite having a disappointing 2025 in which they missed the postseason, the Royals may have a future star behind the plate in Jensen, especially as Salvador Perez ages.

  • Ryan Jeffers C | MIN

    Twins' Ryan Jeffers: Swipes first bag

    Jeffers went 3-for-4 with an RBI double, a stolen base and a walk in Sunday's extra-inning loss to Philadelphia.

    Jeffers singled and stole his first and only base of the year in the fourth inning before knocking an RBI double in the sixth. He produced two straight multi-hit performances to end the year, but he also finished with an 18-game homerless drought. Jeffers hit .266 with a .753 OPS, 35 extra-base hits and 47 RBI through 464 plate appearances.

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