MLB Player News

Higashioka is out of the lineup Sunday against the Blue Jays, Pete Caldera of The Bergen Record reports.

He'll hit the bench for the second time this series and has returned to the backup role at catcher now that Austin Romine has recovered from the hamstring injury he first suffered June 30. Higashioka started four consecutive games while Romine was sidelined and recorded three hits, all of which were home runs.

Leon entered Saturday's game for Christian Vazquez, who fractured his right pinkie finger while sliding into second base, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports. He went 2-for-2 with an RBI in a 15-4 win over the Royals.

The Red Sox placed Vazquez on the disabled list following the game, and he'll undergo further testing when the team returns to Boston. Leon will be Boston's primary catcher for as long as Vazquez is sidelined with Blake Swihart becoming the primary backup. Swihart has started one game and logged 14 innings behind the plate in 2018. Given that relative inexperience, we could be looking at Leon getting a bulk of the starts during Vazquez's absence.

Narvaez went 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI on Saturday against the Astros.

Narvaez came to the plate with the bases loaded in the sixth inning and took advantage by driving a double to the opposite field, narrowly missing a home run. Though he has just a .387 slugging percentage for the season, he has been productive of late, recording three extra-base hits in his last 14 at-bats. He's far from a full-time starter, but Narvaez seems to have worked himself into an evenly split timeshare behind the plate with Kevan Smith.

Vazquez fractured his right pinky finger while sliding into second base Saturday, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reports.

The Red Sox will place Vazquez on the disabled list and it seems likely given the nature of the injury (to his throwing hand) that his absence will extend well past the minimum 10 days. Manager Alex Cora said that Blake Swihart, who has started just one game at catcher so far this season, will help out behind the plate. Sandy Leon figures to take on primary catching duties.

Stassi went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI on Saturday against the White Sox.

Stassi drove in the first and last runs of the game for the Astros to record his fourth multi-RBI game of the season. He should continue to see regular duty behind the plate thanks to the absence of Brian McCann, though he provides limited production across most categories and has only four extra-base hits since June 16.

Sanchez (groin) is catching bullpen sessions and taking batting practice but has yet to run the bases, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Sanchez is expected to be back right around the All-Star break. He's making progress in his recovery, though he'll need to be able to run before he can return. A more concrete timetable should become clear in the coming days.

Mejia hasn't been transitioning to the outfield as well as Cleveland has hoped, Chris Assenheimer of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports.

The Indians have been working to make Mejia an outfielder as the team has more of a need there than behind the plate, but Mejia hasn't progressed much, apparently because he still views himself as a catcher. Still, once the Indians feel satisfied with him defensively in the outfield, he could earn a promotion and regular playing time with Lonnie Chisenhall (calf) facing an extended absence. The 22-year-old is hitting .279/.327/.435 for Triple-A Columbus this season.

Garver is not in the lineup against Baltimore on Saturday, LaVelle E. Neal of the Star Tribune reports.

Garver will take a seat after going 2-for-2 with a walk during Friday's contest. In his place, Bobby Wilson will catch Kyle Gibson and bat ninth.

McCann went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Friday's 3-1 win over the Rangers.

His second-inning shot gave the Tigers a lead they wouldn't relinquish. McCann went the entire month of June without leaving the yard -- his last homer came on May 28 -- and his five home runs and .594 OPS on the year are a disappointment after his solid 2017 performance.

Maldonado is out of Friday's lineup against the Dodgers, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

He had started five of the previous six games. Jose Briceno will start behind the dish and hit ninth.