MLB Player News

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman indicated Saturday that the team is sticking with Sanchez as its starting catcher, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Sanchez has struggled mightily at the dish this season, slashing .130/.256/.338 across 90 plate appearances. The backstop remains a power threat -- his barrel rate (15.0 percent), average exit velocity (92.8 mph) and hard-hit rate (50.0 percent) are each at the 88th percentile or above league-wide -- but his trouble making contact (41.1 K%) has essentially reduced him to an all-or-nothing proposition each time he comes to the plate. Despite the rough start, the organization appears committed to allowing Sanchez to work out his troubles while remaining in the lineup. "We are going with Gary Sanchez," Cashman said. "He is by far our best option on both sides of the ball. We look forward to him finding his groove sooner than later, because we need it. I still have confidence in the player. This is a unique season and you're seeing struggles from successful players around the game."

Perez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Marlins, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Though he's resting in the series finale, Perez is expected to occupy the strong side of a platoon with Kevan Smith behind the dish after Mike Zunino (oblique) was placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday. Perez is slashing .186/.217/.473 on the season and probably won't warrant attention outside of AL-only formats or mixed leagues that start two catchers.

Murphy is out of the lineup for Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader against the Astros.

Murphy started the first game and went 0-for-2, so it's hardly a surprise he's on the bench for the nightcap. Jonah Heim will work behind the plate in Game 2 for the A's.

Sanchez is not in the starting lineup against the Mets on Saturday.

Sanchez is hitting just .130 with 37 strikeouts across 77 at-bats and will receive a routine day off Saturday. Erik Kratz will get the nod behind the dish in his place.

Jeffers is not in the starting lineup for Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader with the Twins

It is quite unusual for Jeffers to be out of the lineup against a southpaw, in this case Matt Boyd, but the Tigers are also starting a lefty in game 2. Jeffers figures to be reinserted into the lineup for the second half of the twin bill while Alex Avila gets the nod behind the plate in the first game.

Gallagher isn't in Saturday's lineup against the White Sox.

Gallagher went hitless in three at-bats Friday, and he'll take a seat for Saturday's contest. Meibrys Viloria will start at catcher.

Perez isn't in Saturday's lineup against the Cardinals.

Perez reached base four times and knocked in one run Friday, but he'll retreat to the bench for the second game of the series. Sandy Leon will start behind the dish.

Grandal went 2-for-5 with a solo home run in Friday's 6-5 win over the Royals.

Grandal mashed a walkoff homer to give the White Sox the victory, which elevated them to a first-place tie with the Twins in the AL Central. If not for an incident in the top of the ninth inning, in which the catcher was involved, Grandal's bottom-of-the-ninth heroics would not have been required. Following a rundown, first baseman Jose Abreu threw home to nail Bubba Starling trying to score, but Grandal wasn't expecting the throw, believing the play was dead. He more than made up for his mental miscue with his fourth home run.

Perez went 3-for-5 with an RBI single in Friday's 14-2 win over the Cardinals.

All three of Perez's hits were singles, and the one he had in the sixth inning scored Carlos Santana. The 31-year-old Perez is slashing only .167/.318/.167 with two RBI and a run scored in 11 games. He will typically share catching duties with Sandy Leon.

Perez (eye) visited an eye specialist this week and remains without an official timeline for his return, Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star reports.

The 30-year-old was diagnosed with central serious chorioretinopathy (fluid accumulation under the retina) after landing on the injured list Aug. 18, but there's been no indication of when he may be able to rejoin the team. Perez is eligible to be activated off the injured list Friday, but he should be considered out indefinitely until the team indicates otherwise. Cam Gallagher and Meibrys Viloria should continue to split catching duties during his absence.