MLB Player News

Kirk is out of the lineup Friday against the Twins.

Kirk is 3-for-23 in his past six games and will head to the bench Friday. Danny Jansen will take over behind the plate for the Blue Jays.

Sanchez is not in the lineup Friday against Cleveland.

Sanchez is mired in a 2-for-25 slump and will take a seat in Friday's series opener. Kyle Higashioka will work behind the plate in his place for New York.

Heim is not starting Friday against the White Sox.

Heim has seen a relatively even split in the catching duties with Jose Trevino in recent weeks, but he'll now sit for the fourth time in five games. Trevino gets the nod Friday and will bat eighth against right-hander Dylan Cease.

Garver (back) is beginning a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on Friday, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

The catcher should require at least a few games of rehab, considering the fact he's been sidelined with a back strain since Aug. 24. The injury came at a bad time for Garver, who hit .303 with three doubles and a home run in his last 10 games. He figures to take the roster spot of backup catcher Ben Rortvedt once activated.

Perez went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer in Thursday's 7-2 loss to Oakland.

Perez served as the DH for Thursday's matinee and supplied the only runs on the day for the Royals, taking Oakland starter Paul Blackburn deep in the first inning. It was the 45th homer of the season for Perez, moving him into a tie with Vladimir Guerrero for the major-league lead. Perez has gone yard in three consecutive games, going 6-for-13 at the plate during that stretch. He's hitting .300/.348/.650 with seven homers and 18 RBI since the start of September.

Heim isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against Houston.

Heim went 0-for-3 in Wednesday's matchup and will head to the bench for the third time in the last four games. Yohel Pozo will start behind the plate and bat seventh.

Gomes isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Royals.

Gomes has gone 1-for-12 with a homer, three runs and two walks across his last four appearances. Sean Murphy will start behind the plate and bat seventh.

Grandal isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Angels, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Grandal will get a breather after he went 6-for-16 with a homer, three runs and three RBI across the last four games. Zack Collins will start behind the dish and bat eighth.

Perez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run Wednesday in the Royals' 12-10 loss to the Athletics.

Perez's second home run in as many days gives him 44 on the season, leaving him one of shy of Toronto's Vladimir Guerrero for the MLB lead. In light of Perez's production relative to other catchers, there's an argument to be made that he's been the most valuable fantasy contributor in 2021. Among all catcher-eligible players, Perez has 14 more home runs, 39 more RBI and 14 more runs than second place in those respective categories.

Stassi is not in the lineup Wednesday against the White Sox.

Stassi hasn't started back-to-back games since Sept. 5 and 6, and that trend will continue after going 1-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts Tuesday. Kurt Suzuki will work behind the plate for the Halos.