MLB Player News

Stassi (thumb) was activated from the 10-day injured list and is starting at catcher and batting ninth Wednesday against the Rangers.

Stassi hit .375 with one home run in 16 at-bats prior to landing on the IL. He should once again assume a fairly even playing time split with Kurt Suzuki. Anthony Bemboom was sent back down in a corresponding move.

Grandal is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Tigers.

It's been a rough stretch for Grandal at the plate, as he is hitting .059 with one home run over his last 11 games, albeit with more walks (eight) than strikeouts (seven) over that stretch. He will be back in the lineup Thursday, per Scott Merkin of MLB.com.

Garver had two home runs and three RBI during Wednesday's 10-2 win against Cleveland.

The 30-year-old was 0-for-14 with nine strikeouts over his previous five appearances, but he busted out with a solo and two-run homer during Wednesday's blowout victory. Garver has a .172/.213/.431 slash line with four home runs, nine RBI and six runs in 18 games this season, and he figures to continue splitting time behind the plate with Ryan Jeffers, as both catchers are struggling offensively.

Trevino is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Angels.

Jonah Heim will enter the lineup as a replacement for Trevino, who caught the first two games of the series. Trevino still appears to have a lock on the No. 1 catching job, despite poor results at the plate of late. Over his last five games, Trevino has gone 1-for-21 with six strikeouts.

Sanchez is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles.

Sanchez will take a seat for the second straight game, one day after manager Aaron Boone suggested that the struggling backstop would likely lose work to Kyle Higashioka. While stepping into the lineup for Sanchez in Tuesday's 5-1 win, Higashioka further solidified his case for earning more work by going 2-for-4 with a solo home run. With Sanchez's playing time likely headed for a downturn at least in the short term, fantasy managers in leagues that start one catcher are probably justified in cutting him.

Murphy is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays.

Murphy will get a well-deserved day off after he provided a pair of home runs while starting in both of the first two games of the series. Aramis Garcia will step in behind the plate, catching for starting pitcher Cole Irvin.

Mejia is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Athletics, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Mejia will alternate turns behind the plate with Mike Zunino for the sixth straight game, with both backstops picking up three starts apiece during that span. After going 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and a run in Tuesday's 4-3 win, Mejia is now slashing a robust .311/.333/.489 through 49 plate appearances.

Higashioka went 2-for-4 with a solo home run Tuesday in the Yankees' 5-1 win over the Orioles.

After manager Aaron Boone acknowledged prior to Tuesday's game that Higashioka would take on increased work behind the plate with Gary Sanchez off to a dismal start to the season, the 31-year-old rewarded the skipper's faith by slugging his fourth home run. Boone indicated that any decision on his starting catcher would be determined on a game-by-game basis, but Higashioka probably earned himself a second straight turn behind the dish Wednesday. Higashioka is now sitting on a monstrous .320/.414/.880 slash line through 29 plate appearances, and he should be on the radar in all leagues that start two catchers now that he's poised to see an uptick in playing time.

Perez is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins, Joe Noga of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Cleveland wraps up its series against Minnesota with a day game after a night game, so Perez will receive a breather after he caught all nine innings of Tuesday's 7-4 victory. Austin Hedges will check in for Perez behind the plate.

Jeffers is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against Cleveland.

The Twins have turned the catcher position into a timeshare of late, with both Jeffers and Mitch Garver having now received four starts apiece in the Twins' last eight contests. Jeffers is sitting on a lowly .392 OPS for the season, while Garver's .517 mark isn't dramatically better. Manager Rocco Baldelli may simply be waiting for one of the two backstops to get hot at the plate before settling on a primary option.