MLB Player News

Barnes was placed on the injured list with a fractured toe 10 days ago. Now he’s back as the backup catcher with Hunter Feduccia optioned to the minors to make room on the active roster.

The 22-year-old is rounding into form a little bit after a slow start to the season. The Cubs’ third-ranked prospect had off-season core muscle surgery and then was shut down in spring training with a groin injury. He now has hits in five of his last six games and has two home runs and seven RBI in nine games this season. There is no place for him in Chicago now, but if he shows the power many scouts believe he has, he’ll make the decision hard for the Cubs by summertime.

Bednar has only allowed one hit in five innings at Triple-A while striking out seven and walking nobody. If the Pirates wanted a reset, it’s happened. There’s no reason for Bednar to remain in Triple-A any longer, and we’d be stashing him in fantasy leagues if you need saves.

Mervis has homered in four of his last five games but will take a seat with left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez on the mound. The Marlins will hope that his bat stays hot on Friday against Zack Wheeler and the Phillies. Eric Wagaman will start at first base and bat cleanup on Thursday. Wagaman has some intriguing batted ball data this season and could be an interesting deep league fantasy option with Jonah Bride no longer in Miami, but with Jesus Sanchez and Connor Norby now off the IL, it’s unclear how Miami will set their lineup against right-handed pitching.

Klein was called up on Wednesday to take Gregory Santos’ place in the bullpen, but he’s now being sent down to make room on the active roster for Emerson Hancock. Klein did not appear in a game for Seattle and will continue to serve as organizational bullpen depth.

The move was announced on Wednesday night, but now it’s official. Hancock will start against the Reds on Thursday, but is not a recommended streaming option after he gave up six runs in 2/3 of an innings in his only start of the season.

Marte was just optioned back to Triple-A on Tuesday when Matt McLain was activated off the IL, but he’ll return now with Christian Encarnacion-Strand landing on the IL. However, we saw last week that Marte being up in Cincinnati does not mean they’ll play him. Austin Hays being off the IL means that Gavin Lux will need to play third base more often, which makes it hard to envision regular playing time for Marte.

Now we have a bit more clarity on why Encarnacion-Strand is out of the lineup on Thursday. He didn’t seem to suffer any injury in last night’s game, but Encarnacion-Strand is also hitting just .158/.183/.298 in 60 plate appearances this season, so perhaps the Reds can use this time as a bit of a reset. Noelvi Marte was called up to take his place, but this should mean more playing time at first base for Jeimer Candelario, but Santiago Espinal has also been taking reps at first base in practice and could get some extra starts.

Thomas has also started four of the last five and seems to have wrestled away the starting job from Jake McCarthy pretty firmly for now. Thomas is just 24 years old and is a former top prospect, so it makes sense for Arizona to continue to give him a chance to play full-time. So far, he’s hitting .308/.364/.462 in 44 plate appearances with 10 RBI and two steals. He seems to have a slightly more aggressive approach this season, pulling and barreling the ball more often, which could make him an intriguing fantasy asset for batting average and steals.

Tawa homered in Wednesday night’s game, so it makes sense that the team keeps him in the lineup. The 26-year-old rookie has gone 4-for-18 in his first six games with one home run and five RBI. He remains off fantasy radars with Ketel Marte (hamstring) nearing a return and Jordan Lawlar inching closer to a call-up.

McLain was activated off the IL on Tuesday and started both Tuesday and Wednesday, so this is likely just a routine day off with a day game after a night game. The Reds may be cautious with McLain’s hamstring over the next couple of weeks, which could mean a slight uptick in Santiago Espinal’s playing time.