MLB Player News

Maldonado is not in the lineup against the Red Sox on Thursday.

Maldonado will receive a standard breather following four straight starts. In his place, Jose Briceno will catch and bat eighth in the order.

Stubbs went 1-for-4 with a home run for Triple-A Fresno in its 5-4 loss to El Paso on Wednesday.

It was only the second long ball in 179 plate appearances on the season for Stubbs, but power has never been regarded as a major component of the backstop's game. Instead, Stubbs draws raves for his exceptional bat-to-ball and on-base skills, which are evident in his meager 15.6 percent strikeout rate and 9.8 percent walk rate, the latter of which is actually his lowest mark at any stop of the minors. An inflated .403 BABIP has propped Stubbs' average up to .346, but his aforementioned plate approach should allow him to at least be a neutral asset in that category when he hits the majors. There are more questions about Stubbs' ability to handle the rigors of catching, however, as he has already proven susceptible to injury during his young pro career and lacks ideal size for the position (5-foot-10, 175 pounds).

Perez (ankle) will begin a rehabilitation assignment at Double-A Frisco on Thursday, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

It's uncertain if the Rangers intend to bring Perez back to the major-league roster when healthy. Since he was placed on the disabled list, manager Jeff Banister moved utility infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa into the backup catcher job.

Leon went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBI in Wednesday's win over the Angels.

Leon deposited a two-run shot over the Green Monster in the second inning, then later added an insurance run in the seventh on an RBI single. He's still sitting more often than not in favor of Christian Vazquez, but Leon has taken advantage of his playing time of late, going 5-for-12 (.417) with six RBI and a couple of runs scored over his last four starts.

Maldonado went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run, a walk and two strikeouts in Wednesday's loss to the Red Sox.

Maldonado helped key a comeback from six runs down with his sixth-inning blast, though it would still not be enough after some late game bullpen woes. The catcher isn't have a particularly good season at the plate -- he's slashing .243/.301/.357 with four homers and 29 RBI -- but he's now driven in seven runs over the last four games.

Wynns was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk after Wednesday's game against the Mariners.

He had barely played since being promoted, notching a .192 average with one home run and 10 strikeouts in 26 at-bats over a three-week span. Chance Sisco will likely be promoted from Triple-A on Thursday to give the Orioles two catchers going forward.

Haase left Wednesday's game for Triple-A Columbus with a migraine.

Given that Haase is a catcher, it made sense to remove him as soon as he felt symptoms (after only one inning), before he risked taking a foul tip to the head. The 25-year-old catcher has some significant raw power, but has had trouble making contact at every stop of the minors. He is hitting just .217/.282/.345 with five home runs and a 29.6 percent strikeout rate in 260 plate appearances in his first full season at Triple-A.

Perez (hand) stated that he felt fine after leaving Wednesday's game and he should be back in action for Friday's series opener in Seattle, Rustin Dodd of The Athleticreports.

Perez appears to have avoided any sort of major injury, as he added that the foul ball got his forearm right by a nerve which caused him to lose feeling in his hand for a couple minutes. With the Royals off Thursday, don't expect Perez to miss any time.

Garver is out of the lineup against the White Sox on Wednesday, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Garver will take a seat after going 1-for-2 with a walk and one run scored during Tuesday's series opener. In his absence, Bobby Wilson will catch and bat ninth.

Perez was removed from Wednesday's game after taking a foul a ball off his right hand, Rustin Dodd of The Athletic reports.

Perez exited the contest in Milwaukee during the bottom of the ninth inning. The catcher will have some extra time to recover with a scheduled off day on tap for the Royals on Thursday, but these sorts of injuries always poise a little concern.