MLB Player News
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Alfredo Duno C | CIN
Reds' Alfredo Duno: Dominating FSL pitchers
Duno hit .338 with seven home runs, 24 walks and 11 strikeouts in 25 August games for Single-A Daytona.
One of the most feared hitters in the Florida State League, the 19-year-old Duno is in complete control at the plate of late, as he walked more than twice as often (23.1 BB%) as he struck out (10.6 K%) last month. On the season, the hulking catcher is slashing .281/.426/.496 with 15 home runs, a 19.1 percent walk rate and an 18.4 percent strikeout rate in 109 games. He is two or three years away from the big leagues, but Duno has the upside to be a top-five fantasy catcher in his prime.
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Luis Torrens DH | NYM
Mets' Luis Torrens: Perfect day at plate Monday
Torrens went 3-for-3 with a double, two runs scored and two RBI in Monday's win over the Tigers.
It's the second three-hit performance for Torrens in his last five starts as he takes advantage of the latest IL stint for Francisco Alvarez (thumb/finger). Over nine games since Alvarez went down in mid-August, Torrens is batting .310 (9-for-26) with three doubles, two homers, six runs and 10 RBI. Alvarez is pushing to return quickly but isn't going to be 100 percent healthy until the offseason, so Torrens figures to retain a significant workload behind the plate through September.
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Carson Kelly C | CHC
Cubs' Carson Kelly: Comes up big Monday
Kelly went 2-for-4 with a walk, a home run and three RBI in Monday's 7-6, extra-inning win over Atlanta.
Kelly played the role of hero Monday, launching his 14th home run of the season in the bottom of the eighth inning with a runner on to tie the game at 6-6. Then, in the bottom of the 10th, the catcher delivered a walk-off RBI single. Kelly came into the contest batting just .152 with a .346 OPS over his previous 10 games, but he's batting a much better .259 with a .793 OPS overall this year.
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Jimmy Crooks C | STL
Cardinals' Jimmy Crooks: Sitting out day after homering
Crooks is out of the lineup for Monday's game versus the Athletics.
Crooks drew his first major-league start in Sunday's 7-4 loss to the Reds and cranked his first big-league home run, but he finds himself back on the bench a day later. The young catcher has started just one of four games since being recalled from Triple-A Memphis. Pedro Pages will catch and bat seventh for St. Louis on Monday.
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Francisco Alvarez C | NYM
Mets' Francisco Alvarez: Catches nine innings at Triple-A
Alvarez (thumb/finger) was able to catch all nine innings of Sunday's game with Triple-A Syracuse, and he appears to be close to returning from the injured list, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.
The 23-year-old backstop landed on the IL on Aug. 18 due to a right thumb injury that will likely require offseason surgery, and Alvarez's digits continued to take a beating on a rehab assignment last week when he was hit by a pitch and fractured his lefty pinky finger Wednesday. Incredibly, he was only sidelined until Saturday before resuming his rehab stint, and pain tolerance appears to be the biggest hurdle before he'll be able to return to the Mets. That said, over his two games this weekend with Syracuse he went 1-for-9 with six strikeouts, and trying to play through injuries to both hands isn't going to help his performance as a hitter.
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Riley Adams C | WAS
Nationals' Riley Adams: Receiving Labor Day off
Adams is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Marlins.
The Nationals are kicking off a three-game set versus Miami with a day game, so Adams will receive a breather after he caught all nine innings of the team's 7-4 loss to the Rays on Sunday afternoon. C.J. Stubbs will draw the start behind the plate in the series opener.
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Liam Hicks C | MIA
Marlins' Liam Hicks: Taking seat against southpaw
Hicks is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Nationals.
The Nationals are sending lefty Andrew Alvarez to the hill for the series opener, so Hicks will head to the bench along with another lefty-hitting lineup regular in Troy Johnston. Hicks closed August with a .267/.359/.344 slash line, one home run, eight RBI and 14 runs over 28 games.
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Garrett Stubbs C | PHI
Phillies' Garrett Stubbs: Gets September call-up
The Phillies recalled Stubbs from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Monday.
Stubbs is up with the big club to serve as its third catcher in September. The 32-year-old has a career .215 average and seven home runs in 198 games in the majors. He hit .265 with eight home runs and five steals in 71 games at Triple-A this season.
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Braxton Fulford C | COL
Rockies' Braxton Fulford: Big performance Sunday
Fulford went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, two runs scored and an RBI on Sunday against the Cubs.
Fulford briefly got spot starts as Colorado's designated hitter, but he's shifted to a more traditional backup catcher of late and started only six of the team's last 14 games. He had one of his best offensive performances of the season Sunday, delivering his fourth multi-hit performance in 22 starts.