Stuart

Turner

He was actually the first overall pick in the second round, with so many teams passing on their draft slots. Turner, 24, registered an underwhelming .239/.322/.363 batting line in 370 plate appearances this past season with the Double-A affiliate of the Twins. He’ll struggle to stick on Cincinnati’s active roster.

Mesoraco referred to Opening Day as “arbitrary,” saying that his goal is to play in as many games as possible in 2017 rather than be ready on April 3. It’s the right attitude to take, and the news isn’t surprising given how little Mesoraco has played this spring. He has just five Cactus League at-bats to this point and still needs to be built up to play a full game and back-to-back games. Once Mesoraco is ready to play for the Reds, he’ll initially share the catching duties with Tucker Barnhart. Stuart Turner or Rob Brantly will likely make the Opening Day roster as Barnhart’s backup with a disabled list stint for Mesoraco looking probable.

That has been the expectation for a while now, as Mesoraco simply hasn’t gotten enough work this spring with just 14 at-bats and zero full games under his belt. He would seem to have a chance to be ready sometime in April, although the Reds will ease him into action once he’s on the active roster. Cincy is slated to open the year with Tucker Barnhart and Rule 5 pick Stuart Turner at catcher.

While not the most fleet a-foot on the basepaths, Turner has now picked up a pair of triples during spring action. The Reds selected him from the Twins with the No. 17 pick in this winter’s Rule 5 draft. Given his struggles in the minors last season (.239/.322/.363 in 370 plate appearances at Double-A in the Twins’ system) he is unlikely to land a spot on the Opening Day roster.

It’s a routine day off. Stuart Turner will catch Scott Feldman.

He’s just getting a breather. Stuart Turner will do the catching.

He’s getting a day off with it being a day game after a night game, which is pretty standard for starting catchers. Stuart Turner will be being the plate.

Turner wasn’t seeing much action as the club’s third catcher, so this isn’t a major blow to the Reds. He should be able to return to the team in a couple of weeks.

Turner missed a month with a strained hamstring. The Reds will carry three catchers for now, as they seem committed to hanging on to the Rule 5 pick.

Turner recently landed on the disabled list with a right hamstring strain. He’s likely to be remain in Triple-A even after he’s back to full health.