MLB Player News

Perez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Monday's 8-3 win over the Tigers.

It was a close game until the sixth inning, when Perez ignited a six-run rally for the Royals with his solo shot. The catcher has hit safely in six straight games, going 10-for-21 (.476) in that span. the homer was his first since May 3. Perez remains one of the top hitters in baseball this season with a .341/.404/.565 slash line, nine long balls, 38 RBI, 19 runs scored and 11 doubles over 47 contests.

Smith went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Monday's 6-4 win over the Diamondbacks.

Smith hadn't homered since May 1, going 8-for-43 (.186) with two doubles and six RBI over the 13 games between long balls. That's a rare cold spell for the catcher, who is slashing .308/.381/.481 with five homers, 31 RBI, 26 runs scored and 12 doubles over 181 plate appearances. With Shohei Ohtani occupying the designated hitter spot, Smith has received routine days off this year, though he's still the primary catcher over backup Austin Barnes.

O'Hoppe went 2-for-5 with a three-run home run in Monday's 9-7 win over the Astros.

O'Hoppe is heating up at the plate -- he's hit safely in eight of his last 11 games with two homers and 11 RBI in that span. The catcher is up to four long balls, 22 RBI, 18 runs scored, six doubles and a triple while slashing .264/.321/.403 over 157 plate appearances. The 24-year-old got off to a slow start this season, but he's back to offering some pop from the middle of the order.

Jansen went 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, five RBI and two runs scored in Monday's victory over the White Sox.

This was the third time in Jansen's career that he has driven in five or more runs in a game, marking the first occurrence since Oct. 1, 2022. The highlight of 29-year-old catcher's day was launching a 377-foot homer off Jordan Leasure in the seventh inning. The Blue Jays backstop has swung a hot bat to open the season, slashing .333/.397/.681 over his first 78 plate appearances.

D'Arnaud (head) will catch and bat fifth in the second game of Monday's doubleheader versus the Padres.

D'Arnaud hasn't played since being removed from last Friday's game due to dizziness, but he passed concussion tests and is back in the lineup following a couple days of rest. He has an .836 OPS with five home runs over 36 games with Atlanta this season.

Bethancourt went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Sunday's loss to the Mets.

The catcher took Jake Diekman deep in the seventh inning, bringing the Marlins to within a run at 4-3, but it was as close as they got. Bethancourt has offered little at the plate this season -- Sunday's homer was his first of 2024, and he's slashing .143/.186/.232 in 60 plate appearances as the backup to Nick Fortes.

Kirk went 1-for-1 with two walks, a double and two RBI in Sunday's win over the Rays.

The 25-year-old has seen his playing time crater in May as the red-hot Danny Jansen has seized control of the starting job behind the plate for the Blue Jays, but Kirk's own offensive struggles haven't helped. Sunday's performance was his first multi-RBI game since Opening Day, and through five games in May he's batting just .214 (3-for-14).

Jansen is starting at catcher and batting second in Monday's game versus the White Sox.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider has been changing things up with his lineups in an effort to get his offense going, and he's trying something new again Monday in batting Jansen higher than fifth for the first time this season. The catcher is slashing .313/.384/.625 on the year, so it's a move that certainly makes sense on paper.

Campusano went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Sunday's 9-1 win over Atlanta.

Campusano went deep to left off Ray Kerr to extend the Padres' lead to 8-0 in the fifth. It was his second home run this month and his fourth of the year. The 25-year-old is now slashing .264/.309/.421 with 14 extra-base hits, 25 RBI, 19 runs and a 9:20 BB:K in 149 plate appearances after compiling a career-high 174 plate appearances last season.

Grandal went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Cubs.

The steal was Grandal's first -- and first attempt -- since 2022, and it was just his 13th career theft. The catcher is off to a middling start to his season after missing the first month-plus due to plantar fasciitis in his left foot. He's slashing .211/.231/.395 with two home runs, eight RBI, four runs scored and a double over 39 plate appearances while adding a 1:7 BB:K. Grandal is handling the starting job at catcher for the Pirates over Joey Bart.