MLB Player News

Vazquez is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Royals, WEEI.com's Evan Drellich reports.

Vazquez will take a seat for a second consecutive game for the first time since mid-June as Sandy Leon draws another start behind the plate. Manager John Farrell is likely rewarding Leon after he blasted a home run during Wednesday's series finale in Seattle. Expect to see Vazquez back at catcher Saturday.

Perez (ribs) is back in the lineup Friday against the Red Sox, Joel Goldberg of Fox Sports Kansas City reports.

As expected, the backstop will return to action Friday after being removed prematurely Tuesday night and sitting out Wednesday's contest. Perez will slot back in behind the dish and bat fifth against Boston starter Rick Porcello for the series opener.

Sanchez went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and two RBI during Thursday's win over Tampa Bay.

This was just the second home run in July for the backstop, and Sanchez entered Thursday's game with a disappointing .579 OPS for the month. Fantasy owners hope the blast kick-starts a solid stretch for the slugger. Even with the recent struggles, he's still sporting solid year-long numbers with 15 bombs, 49 RBI, 44 runs and a .266/.342/.479 slash line through 295 plate appearances.

Stubbs, 24, is batting .237/.325/.340 with four home runs, 24 RBI and eight steals through 68 games for Double-A Corpus Christi.

Stubbs hit .304 last year, so 2017 has clearly been a disappointment in terms of his batting average, even as he has accumulated almost as many walks as strikeouts. His home runs and steals are down as well, though he does have double-digit potential in both areas.

Narvaez is not in the lineup Thursday against the Cubs.

Narvaez has nine hits in his past 26 at-bats (.346), and although he seems to have climbed above Kevan Smith on the catching depth chart, the 25-year-old will head to the bench for a night off. Smith will assume catching duties for the evening.

Manager Ned Yost reaffirmed Wednesday that Perez's rib tightness is "nothing major," adding that the catcher is feeling "much better" and will return to the lineup Friday against Boston, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Perez left Tuesday's game in the fifth inning after experiencing tightness following an at-bat. He was not in the lineup Wednesday, but Yost said that was only precautionary. Cam Gallagher was brought up from Triple-A Omaha to replace Perez on Wednesday, but the former is likely headed back before Friday's game.

Gomes is out of the lineup Thursday against the Angels.

It appears to be a regular day off for Gomes, who was behind the plate for the first two games of the series. Roberto Perez will get the call in his place for the afternoon matchup.

Maldonado is out of the lineup Thursday agains the Indians.

Maldonado is coming off 10 consecutive starts -- his longest such stretch of the season. Over that period since the All-Star break, his bat has cooled off a little bit, as he's hitting .182 with nine strikeouts. He does have two long balls, though, so there's no reason for fantasy owners to panic. Juan Graterol will pick up a rare start in his stead for the series finale.

Leon went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer against the Mariners on Wednesday.

Boston's backup catcher hadn't homered since June 23, and the .222/.286/.244 line he put up over 45 at-bats in the interim certainly didn't help any fantasy owners. He's proving that last year's surprising productivity (.310 batting average, .845 OPS) was a fluke.

Narvaez will start at catcher and bat sixth Wednesday against the Cubs, MLB.com reports.

Narvaez will be behind the plate for the fourth time in six games, so for at least the time being, it appears he may have surpassed the slumping Kevan Smith on the depth chart at catcher. Neither backstop has been much of an asset from a fantasy standpoint this season, and even with the uptick in usage, Narvaez still profiles as a below-average No. 2 option in two-catcher mixed formats. He's batting .268 with just one home run, nine RBI and 16 runs over 176 plate appearances this season.