MLB Player News

Vazquez is not in the starting lineup for Friday's series opener against the Rays, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

The 26-year-old is 4-for-6 in his career against Alex Cobb, the projected starter for Tampa Bay, but Sandy Leon will get the start instead. Despite Vazquez's outstanding defensive abilities, he continues to split time behind the plate with his power-hitting counterpart, a trend unlikely to subside within the near future.

Mejia was placed on the 7-day disabled list at Double-A Akron on Thursday due to groin soreness.

One of the top catching prospects in all of baseball, Mejia's bat has been up to par in his first taste of the Double-A level, and with some further refinement behind the plate, it's not entirely out of the question for him to surface at the big-league level in the second half of 2017. The groin issue represents a setback in his development, but so long as it doesn't prove to be a multi-month concern, it shouldn't dim his long-term outlook too much.

Gomes' manager, Terry Francona, said the catcher was removed from Wednesday's game because of "intestinal turmoil," the Associated Press reports.

Francona mentioned Gomes ate something prior to the contest that didn't settle well. Fantasy owners can read between the lines on this one. The good news is -- with the Tribe being off Thursday -- Gomes shouldn't have a problem being ready for Friday against the Twins.

Gomes exited Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays early with an illness, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Gomes was 1-for-2 with a double before being replaced by Roberto Perez behind the dish. It's unclear how long the illness will keep Gomes sidelined, though the removal could have been precautionary given Thursday's off-day. More should be known about his status after Wednesday's contest.

Leon is out of the lineup Wednesday against the Brewers, Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Leon will return to the bench following a three-game run as the starter, but he may have done enough during that time to reestablish himself as the primary backstop over Christian Vazquez, who will be behind the dish Wednesday. Leon went 5-for-14 with three homers and five RBI over the three games, raising his OPS 183 points in the process.

Maile will start at catcher and bat ninth in the order Wednesday against the Indians, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Maile will pick up his second start behind the plate in three games since Russell Martin (shoulder/neck) hit the disabled list Monday. Martin acknowledged that the injury has been bothering him since spring training and isn't comparable to an issue he's dealt with before, so there's a good possibility the veteran backstop will miss more than the minimum 10 days. While Maile will stand to benefit if that's the case, he'll need to show some more offense before moving up in the lineup. Maile has gone 1-for-13 at the dish in five games with the Blue Jays this season.

Maldonado is out of Wednesday's lineup against the A's.

After catching the last five games, he will take a seat in the day game against righty Andrew Triggs. Juan Graterol will get the start behind the dish and hit ninth.

McCann went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Tuesday's win over the Diamondbacks.

McCann has just 11 hits and a .157 average this season, but he's gone deep seven times. Locked into a timeshare with Alex Avila, McCann provides a little bit of fantasy value due simply to his power potential whenever he's in the lineup.

Narvaez was inserted into Tuesday's starting lineup after Geovany Soto was scratched due to elbow soreness. He walked twice and scored a run in a 7-2 loss to the Twins.

This is the second flareup of elbow soreness for Soto, who spent some time on the disabled list back in April with inflammation. Narvaez will become the primary catcher for the White Sox until Soto gets past the elbow woes.

Perez went 3-for-4 with a double, a homer, two walks, two RBI and two runs against the Rays on Tuesday.

He's shown plenty of thump in the bat this year, rewarding fantasy owners with seven homers and 18 RBI already, although this one was his first of May. There's no reason to think that Perez won't remain among the most productive catchers all season long, as he's been a reliable source of both health and pop for years.