MLB Player News

Perez is out of the lineup Thursday against the Angels, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Perez will take a seat after three consecutive games behind the plate, opening a spot in the lineup at catcher for Jesus Sucre. With the Rays having dealt away the injured Wilson Ramos (hamstring) to the Phillies on Tuesday, Perez looks poised to serve as Tampa Bay's No. 1 backstop for the rest of the season. Perez is mainly regarded for his aptitude as a defender, but he has been a quality producer at the plate as well in his brief time in the big leagues, recording eight hits in his first 17 at-bats.

Stassi went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBI in Wednesday's 8-3 win over Seattle.

Stassi's three-run bomb in the fifth inning put the game out of reach and secured Houston's second consecutive win after a five-game losing streak. It was Stassi's first homer in 25 games. Over the first two-and-a-half months, Stassi was putting on a pretty good show of power, slugging .500 with seven homers over the first 40 games. Since then, however, the catcher has slugged .328 with one homer over the last 25 games. It's not surprising he's been unable to sustain the early power; Stassi has had more plate appearances (211) in the majors this season than he's had in the previous five seasons combined (89).

Narvaez is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.

Narvaez has been on a role lately, hitting .381 with three homers and a 1.113 OPS over his last 12 games. Kevan Smith gets the start in his place.

McCann is out of the lineup against Cincinnati on Wednesday, Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports.

McCann will retreat to the bench for a standard day off after two straight starts behind the plate. John Hicks will catch Mike Fiers and bat sixth in his stead.

Collins leads the minor leagues in walks (87), on-base percentage (.408) and walk rate (21 percent), and has an .833 OPS in 96 games for Double-A Birmingham.

Collins, the White Sox's top catching prospect, has made getting on base a signature since he was drafted in the first round of 2016. He may be focused too much on the OBP, which could negate the potential of plus power as he allows pitches he can drive pass by. Birmingham manager Ryan Newman told Russell Dorsey of the Chicago Tribune that Collins was being too selective earlier in the season, when the catcher was hitting below .200 in April, but has been better in that regard. "When he expanded, not the strike zone, but what he wanted to hit, that's when he really took off. He looks comfortable," said Newman.

Perez is slated to continue being evaluated at the major-league level in the wake of Wilson Ramos' (hamstring) trade to the Phillies on Tuesday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The promising prospect continued to wield a hot bat in a 10-6 win over the Angels on Tuesday, lacing an RBI double in four at-bats. Perez hadn't yet made it to the big leagues while with the Diamondbacks organization, but he immediately slotted in with the Rays upon arriving via trade last Wednesday. The 25-year-old has hit safely in all four games he's played thus far, going 7-for-14 with a pair of two-baggers. He profiles better offensively than fellow catcher Jesus Sucre, but the latter's defense and experience working with the staff should ensure that they remain in a fairly even playing time split.

Garver is out of the lineup against the Indians on Tuesday, LaVelle E. Neal of the Star Tribune reports.

Garver will receive a breather after going 2-for-4 with a double and one RBI during Monday's victory. In his absence, Bobby Wilson will handle the catching duties and bat ninth.

Gomes is out of the lineup against Minnesota on Tuesday, LaVelle E. Neal of the Star Tribune reports.

Gomes will take a seat after starting the past two games behind the plate. In his absence, Roberto Perez will catch Trevor Bauer and hit eighth.

Leon is not in the lineup against the Phillies on Tuesday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Leon will head to the bench after starting the past four games behind the plate. Blake Swihart will handle the catching duties and hit second in the order.

Maldonado made his first start since being acquired by Houston and went 0-for-3 in Sunday's 4-3 loss to Texas.

Maldonado was brought on board to be the Astros' backup at catcher to Max Stassi while Brian McCann (knee) recovers from surgery. To get a sense of how much playing time he'll receive, Maldonado is replacing Tim Federowicz, who made seven starts in 17 games while with Houston. Maldonado has more MLB experience than Federowicz had, so he could get more at-bats, but he's also less familiar with Houston's staff. We suspect Stassi will remain the primary starter with Maldonado getting two-to-three starts per week.