MLB Player News

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

Mike Zunino will get a turn behind the plate after Mejia had caught in three of the last four games. Zunino remains the superior defensive option of the two, but Mejia appears to have shown enough improvement in that area early on during his first season in Tampa Bay to turn the Rays' catching situation into more of a timeshare than it has been in recent years. Both backstops have gotten off to strong starts with the bat as well, but Zunino's track record offers less hope that he can maintain his hot start than Mejia.

Garver is out of the lineup for Monday's game against Cleveland, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

With Ryan Jeffers behind home plate for the fourth time in six games, Garver may be Option 1B at catcher for the Twins at this point. Though Jeffers is only a modest upgrade from Garver defensively, that may be enough to give him the edge in playing time while Garver's struggles at the dish from 2020 have carried over to the new season. Garver has struck out in 24 of his 53 plate appearances (45.3 percent), and his 5.7 percent walk rate would be the lowest mark of his career.

Perez was removed in the bottom of the sixth inning of Monday's game against the Tigers after jamming his thumb earlier in the contest, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports. He went 1-for-3 with a double before departing.

The thumb injury resulted in a disappointing end to Perez's 1,000th career game in the big leagues. Per Rogers, Perez appeared to suffer the injury during a play at the plate in the third inning, but he was initially able to stay in the game after being evaluated by a team trainer. Cam Gallagher ended up replacing Perez three innings later, however, and the 30-year-old backstop's status for the remainder of the week is now uncertain. The Royals will presumably send Perez in for further tests on his thumb before an update on his condition is provided ahead of the team's two-game series in Pittsburgh that begins Tuesday.

Jeffers will start at catcher and bat ninth Monday against Cleveland, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Set to make his fourth start in six games, Jeffers appears to have at least temporarily supplanted Mitch Garver as Minnesota's top catcher. Jeffers isn't a dramatic upgrade over Garver from a defensive standpoint, so he'll likely need to show some improvement at the plate to ensure he remains atop the depth chart on a long-term basis. Jeffers enters Monday's contest with a .442 OPS and 48.5 percent strikeout rate in 33 plate appearances on the season.

Collins went 3-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Sunday's 8-4 win over the Rangers.

All three of Collins' hits were singles, but it was his third-inning walk that got him on base before he scored on a Nick Madrigal triple. Collins has one home run, five RBI, three runs scored and a .206/.289/.324 slash line across 38 plate appearances. He entered Sunday in an 0-for-15 skid.

Stassi (thumb) will come off the injured list "any day now" according to manager Joe Maddon, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Stassi went on the 10-day IL on April 13 after spraining his left thumb. He's eligible to return to action and could do so as soon as Monday. He'll likely resume his role as the Angels' primary catcher upon his activation.

Jeffers is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

Jeffers will head to the bench in favor of Mitch Garver after making three of the last four starts at catcher. While Jeffers hasn't necessarily leapfrogged Garver on the depth chart at this point, the two appear to have settled into more of a timeshare behind the dish after Garver entered the season as the No. 1 option. Neither player has been able to get much going at the plate, with Jeffers posting a .442 OPS (in 33 plate appearances) and Garver providing a .594 OPS (49 plate appearances).

Grandal is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rangers.

With Grandal resting following four consecutive starts at catcher, Zack Collins will step in behind the dish for the series finale. Grandal is in the midst of a brutal slump at the plate, having recorded two hits in 31 at-bats over his last 10 games.

Trevino is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the White Sox.

Trevino appears to be receiving a routine maintenance day after he started at catcher in both of the first two games of the series. Jonah Heim will relieve Trevino behind the dish Sunday.

Mejia will start at catcher and bat eighth Sunday against the Blue Jays, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

He'll be behind the plate for the fourth time in five games, perhaps signaling that he's moved ahead of Mike Zunino on the depth chart at catcher. While Mejia has his shortcomings as a receiver, he's at least made strides in that area so far this season and offers an upgrade over Zunino with the bat. Through his first 39 plate appearances with Tampa Bay, Mejia is slashing .286/.316/.457 with an excellent 7.7 percent strikeout rate.