MLB Player News

Stephenson went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Monday's 2-0 win over Milwaukee.

Offense was scarce in the contest, and Stephenson accounted for one of two total runs with his fourth-inning solo blast. The long ball was his first since May 13, a span of 19 games. Stephenson has struggled since that previous homer, batting .189 with 24 strikeouts and just 14 hits over 74 at-bats.

Diaz went 4-for-5 with two doubles and a run scored in Monday's win over the Blue Jays.

Diaz has been heating up lately, going 11-for-28 (.393) over his last nine games. In his last four games, he's gone deep twice while adding three doubles. After posting a .536 OPS through 15 games, Diaz is now slashing .284/.300/.486 through 80 plate appearances.

Salazar was optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land on Monday.

As expected, Salazar will head back to Triple-A on Monday, returning to Sugar Land after he went 0-for-7 with three strikeouts in the month of May as the Astros' third catcher. Grae Kessinger had his contract selected from Sugar Land and will replace Salazar on the major-league roster.

Maldonado is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Blue Jays.

Maldonado looks to be receiving a routine off day after he was behind the dish in each of the Astros' last three games. Yainer Diaz will pick up a start at catcher and bat eighth in place of Maldonado.

Garver will bat seventh as Texas' designated hitter in Monday's game against the Cardinals.

Garver will serve as the Rangers' DH for the third straight game and looks as though he'll be the team's favored option at that spot in the lineup over Robbie Grossman, who is on the bench for the third time in five contests. The Rangers are carrying Sandy Leon as a third catcher on the roster, so even while he's seeing steady playing time, Garver won't necessarily be manager Bruce Bochy's first choice to spell Jonah Heim behind the plate.

Jansen (groin) did some sprints pregame Monday at Rogers Centre, Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun reports.

The activity would seem to bode well for Jansen being ready to start a minor-league rehab assignment soon, if the Blue Jays think he needs one. The catcher is eligible to return from a left groin strain, which has kept him out of commission for the last week and a half.

Langeliers is not in the starting lineup Monday versus the Pirates.

Langeliers will take a seat after he went 3-for-10 with a double, an RBI, a run scored and four strikeouts while starting all three games of the team's series with the Marlins. Carlos Perez will take over behind the plate and bat fifth in the series opener with Pittsburgh.

Bethancourt is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Red Sox, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Bethancourt will take a seat for the series finale in Boston after he was behind the dish for three of the Rays' previous four games. Francisco Mejia will catch for starting pitcher Shane McClanahan on Monday.

The Mets designated Nido for assignment Monday.

The transaction frees up a spot on the 40-man roster and 26-man active roster for fellow catcher Omar Narvaez (calf), who was reinstated from the 60-day injured list prior to Tuesday's series opener in Atlanta. According to Mike Puma of the New York Post, the Mets are expected to find a taker for Nido via trade, but if a deal can't be finalized within the next few days, the veteran backstop will be exposed to waivers. The 29-year-old was hitting just .125 over 61 plate appearances on the season but was valued by the Mets for his defensive acumen.

Diaz went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a double in Sunday's 2-1 loss to the Twins.

The Astros mustered up just five hits on the afternoon with Diaz accounting for two of them, including the team's only two extra-base hits. The 24-year-old's path to more consistent playing time hinges on a Martin Maldonado injury or trade, but he has notched five hits and three RBI over his last three games, with three of those hits going for extra bases. For the year, he's slashing .246/.267/.435 with three homers, seven RBI and 11 runs over 75 plate appearances.