MLB Player News

Stassi (hand) was activated from the 10-day disabled list Monday.

Stassi was sidelined for just over the minimum amount of time with left hand inflammation and was cleared to return after a successful three-game rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi. With Brian McCann's top backup at catcher, Evan Gattis (wrist), on track to return from the DL by the weekend, Stassi and Juan Centeno won't be in store for much work behind the plate -- if any -- before the season concludes.

Mejia will serve as the Indians' designated hitter and bat eighth Monday against the White Sox.

Both of the Tribe's top two catchers, Yan Gomes and Roberto Perez, have struggled at the dish for the balance of the season, but Perez in particular has heated up of late to become a key part of the Indians' 11-game winning streak. As a result, it's not expected that Mejia, one of the top catching prospects in all of baseball, will be in store for much duty behind the plate in September, but with Edwin Encarnacion receiving the day off to rest, manager Terry Francona will hand the 21-year-old his first career start in the majors. Mejia had previously appeared as a pinch hitter in two contests, going 0-for-2 with a run scored.

Perez is in the starting lineup Monday against Detroit.

Perez will shoulder the catching duties for a second straight day, proving his hot bat is being noticed by manager Terry Francona. The 28-year-old is more than capable of holding his own defensively, so contributing offensively like he has lately should allow Perez to see more playing time down the stretch.

Gomes is out of the lineup Monday against Detroit.

Gomes will take a seat for a second straight day while Roberto Perez handles the backstop duties. The latter has been heating up at the dish, and with Francisco Mejia part of the expanded roster, Gomes may very well see his playing time cut significantly down the stretch.

Sanchez will begin serving a three-game suspension Monday for his role in a brawl between the Yankees and Tigers on Aug. 24, Sweeny Murti of Sports Radio 66 WFAN reports.

Sanchez was originally slapped with a four-game suspension, but it was appealed down to three games. He'll be eligible to return for the weekend series against the Rangers on Friday. In the meantime, Austin Romine and Erik Kratz will share duties behind the dish.

Perez went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a walk in Sunday's 11-1 shellacking of the Tigers.

Much like he did last year, the backup catcher is heating up late in the campaign. Since the start of August, Perez is hitting .317 with three home runs and 14 RBI through 15 games. His lack of consistent playing time makes him unusable in most leagues, but Perez is worth deploying in daily formats as long as he remains hot.

Stassi (hand) will be activated from the 10-day disabled list Monday, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Stassi wrapped up a three-game rehab assignment Friday with Double-A Corpus Christi, during which he recorded four hits -- including two home runs -- in nine at-bats. Suffice to say, his left hand doesn't appear to be presenting any issues and shouldn't impact his availability when he rejoins the Astros, though it's unlikely Stassi will see much usage behind No. 1 catcher Brian McCann.

Vazquez is out of the lineup Sunday against the Yankees, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

He'll cede catching duties to Sandy Leon after starting three of the previous four contests. With a .330/.382/.489 batting line since the All-Star break, Vazquez is finally starting to gain a little separation in the job battle with Leon.

Gomes is out of the lineup Sunday against the Tigers.

Gomes is simply getting a breather for the day game after a night game, allowing Roberto Perez to pick up a start behind the plate. The Indians recalled top catching prospect Francisco Mejia on Friday when rosters expanded, but he has yet to start in any of the Tribe's four games since his promotion and doesn't look like he's a serious threat to Gomes' spot atop the depth chart just yet.

McCann is out of Saturday's lineup against the Indians.

He will take a seat for the second straight game. McCann is hitting .287/.347/.414 with three home runs over his last 25 games. Bryan Holaday will get the start behind the dish, hitting seventh.