MLB Player News

Perez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 7-1 win over the Cubs.

The 29-year-old backstop took Matt Swarmer deep in the second inning as the Pirates raced out to an early lead. Perez has three homers in 72 plate appearances on the season, but occasional pop is all he offers, and his .435 OPS is somehow even worse than his career .539 mark.

Smith went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional RBI during Tuesday's 8-2 win at Cincinnati.

Smith started the scoring with a solo home run during the opening frame, and he also delivered a sacrifice fly during the eighth to bring home Los Angeles' final run of the day. The 27-year-old had five home runs through his first 41 contests of the season, but he's found his power stroke of late with four long balls in his past 13 games.

Stephenson (thumb) is expected to have his cast removed within the next few days, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Depending on the feedback he receives from his surgeon once the cast is removed, Stephenson could be able to resume light baseball activities by next week. The 25-year-old was projected to miss around 4-to-6 weeks when he first fractured his thumb June 9, and that timeline is still believed to be in place.

Stalling is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Rockies, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Stalling started the past two games and will take a seat for Tuesday's contest. Nick Fortes will work behind the plate and bat ninth.

Narvaez will sit Tuesday against the Cardinals.

Narvaez's off days typically come against lefties, but he'll sit here against righty Jack Flaherty. Victor Caratini gets the start behind the plate.

Nido will sit Tuesday in Houston.

Nido is the clear No. 1 option behind the plate in Queens in the absence of James McCann (wrist), starting 10 of the last 11 games. However, Nido will get a rest Tuesday with Patrick Mazeika taking over at the position.

Gomes is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game in Pittsburgh.

Gomes will sit for the second game in a row and looks like he'll be more of a part-time player after he received more work behind the plate last week while manager David Ross showed more of a willingness to deploy Willson Contreras as a designated hitter. Contreras should still pick up starts as a DH every now and then, but Ross appears content to rotate a number of players at that spot in the lineup rather than reserving it strictly for Contreras or Gomes. Ian Happ will handle the non-defensive role Tuesday while Contreras starts behind the plate.

Casali will sit Tuesday against Atlanta, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.

Casali hasn't started back-to-back games since June 10 and 11 as he deals with a nagging hamstring issue. He started Monday's series opener but will sit in favor of Austin Wynns on Tuesday.

Heineman is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Cubs.

Heineman will be getting some routine maintenance after he was behind the plate for four of the Pirates' last five contests. Michael Perez will catch for starting pitcher Roansy Contreras on Tuesday.

Heineman went 1-for-4 with a double and an RBI on Monday against the Cubs.

Heineman doubled in a run in the seventh inning to contribute to a five-run rally for Pittsburgh. It was his first hit in his last 21 at-bats -- a span of seven starts. Heineman is still operating as Pittsburgh's primary catcher, though he's hitting just .155/.221/.211 across 80 plate appearances on the season.