MLB Player News

Pena signed a minor league contract with the White Sox on Monday, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports.

He was drafted in 2010 by the Astros and reached Triple-A last season for the first time in his career. Omar Narvaez, Kevan Smith and Alfredo Gonzalez are all likely ahead of Pena on the organizational depth chart, but it is a very weak position for the White Sox, so playing time could become available. That said, he has never posted a wRC+ above 90 in seven minor league seasons, so the offensive upside is very limited.

Mejia was added to the Indians' 40-man roster Friday, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

The Indians weren't going to let Mejia get away in the Rule 5 draft -- he's one of the top catching prospects in the game (one of the top hitting catchers in the minor leagues, anyway). He posted a combined .342/.382/.514 line between Low-A and High-A in 2016, at one point hitting safely in 50 straight games. The 21-year-old figures to advance to Double-A next season.

Gallagher was added to the Royals' 40-man roster Friday.

The Royals opted to add Gallagher rather than risk losing him in the Rule 5 draft. He advanced to the Double-A level in 2016, batting .259/.348/.359 with four homers and 24 RBI in 91 games. It's hard to imagine Gallagher will get a chance in 2017 with three other catchers on the 40-man roster.

Garver was added to the Twins' 40-man roster on Friday, MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger reports.

The Twins protected him from the Rule 5 draft, as expected. Given the state of catching in the minors and the lack of a reliable one on the Twins' 25-man roster, Garver has understandably gained some steam as a sleeper at the position. He hit 11 home runs with a 118 wRC+ in 95 games at Double-A and dominated in a brief run at Triple-A, thanks largely to a .436 BABIP. Look for him to head back to Triple-A at the start of 2017, with a potential promotion to the big leagues at some point during the summer.

Moore was outrighted to Triple-A Columbus on Monday.

Moore went hitless in his brief stint with Cleveland in September, and given his inauspicious showing in the minors, it was only a matter of time before the journeyman catcher was cast off the 40-man roster. The 32-year-old will likely go on to act as organizational depth next season.

Garver is hitting .262 with four home runs in 11 games in the Arizona Fall League. He hit .329 with a .815 OPS in 22 games after he was promoted to Triple-A Rochester.

Garver hit just .257 with a .753 OPS at Double-A in 95 games, so he's had a late surge in the plate in a small sample size. His fall performance is better than his minor league career that has featured power but just a .764 OPS. At age 25, he's not a top prospect but could find a role in the majors in 2017 with the Twins very thin at catcher.

Manager John Farrell said Vazquez could start Game 4 of the American League Division Series against the Indians, with Eduardo Rodriguez on the mound, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports.

Vazquez was included on the postseason roster chiefly for his defense and ability to throw out base runners. The erratic but talented Rodriguez posted a 4.50 ERA in 22 innings this year with Vazquez behind the plate, but he fanned 25 in that sample, so it could wind up as a positive pairing.

Casali went 2-for-3 with an RBI single, a run-scoring double and two walks in Sunday's season-ending 6-4 victory over the Rangers.

The backstop, filling the DH role Sunday, opened the scoring with a single that plated Richie Shaffer in the second and then closed things out with an insurance run in the 10th off a two-bagger that drove home Alexei Ramirez. After a mostly miserable campaign at the plate in terms of batting average, Casali closed out 2016 by hitting safely in six of his last eight games, with four multi-hit efforts, three doubles and five RBI over that span.

Gomes went 1-for-2 with a two-run homer in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Royals.

After missing more than two months with a shoulder and knee injury, Gomes drilled a go-ahead homer in his first at-bat since July 17. It was one of the few highlights in an otherwise disappointing season for Gomes, who batted a lowly .167/.201/.327 with 69 strikeouts and just nine walks in 264 plate appearances. The 29-year-old's numbers have been trending down since 2013, making him a dicey fantasy option as he approaches his thirties.

Indians manager Terry Francona said Sunday that Gomes could be included on the club's ALDS roster, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports.

Gomes was activated from the DL on Friday after a lengthy absence due to a separated shoulder and fractured wrist. However, he's still not fully comfortable hitting just yet. The Indians included Gomes in the lineup behind the plate for their regular-season finale Sunday against the Royals, so that may serve as a testing ground to see what Gomes is capable of doing in the batter's box. If Gomes is included on the ALDS roster, the Indians would likely carry three catchers as a safeguard against another injury setback.