MLB Player News

Stassi left Tuesday's game against the Rangers after being hit by a pitch on his right hand, Julia Morales of AT&T SportsNet Southwest reports.

Stassi was hit in his first at-bat during the top of the first inning and briefly stayed in to run the bases, but was replaced behind the plate by Tim Federowicz for the bottom of the frame. The 27-year-old was diagnosed with a right hand bruise after X-rays came back negative, and he is currently considered day-to-day.

Stassi will be the Astros' starting catcher for at least 4-to-6 weeks with Brian McCann undergoing knee surgery, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Stassi's fantasy stock should shoot up, at least in the short term, as any everyday player in the Astros' lineup will have plenty of opportunities to drive in runs and be driven in by his teammates. The 27-year-old had been slowly carving out a larger role, starting five of the last eight games behind the plate. He's outhit McCann so far this season, posting a .255/.335/.482 line compared to .206/.283/.323 for his veteran teammate, so if he continues to impress in a full-time role he has a shot to keep the job for the rest of the year.

Vazquez is not starting Tuesday against the Nationals, Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston reports.

Vazquez will sit in favor of Sandy Leon for the third time in four games, suggesting that a changing of the guard could be taking place behind the plate. Leon's relatively unimpressive .254/.295/.412 season line is nonetheless far superior to Vazquez's .216/.254/.307 mark, so it would make sense for the Red Sox to consider a switch.

Garver is not starting Monday against the Brewers, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Garver will sit in favor of Bobby Wilson for the seventh time in the Twins' last 11 games. Garver's .262/.329/.376 slash line is unremarkable, but it's far better than Wilson's .132/.218/.235, so it would be a surprise if Wilson were to claim the starting job.

Vazquez is not in the lineup Monday against the Nationals, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Vazquez will sit in favor of Sandy Leon for the second time in three games. Leon's .261/.303/.423 season slash line easily outpaces Vazquez's .217/.255/.308 mark, and he's 8-for-17 over his last six games, so there's a possibility that Vazquez's starting job could be under threat.

Sanchez (groin) remains on pace to receive clearance to return from the disabled list in about two or three weeks, but Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Sunday the team would likely wait until after the All-Star break before activating the backstop, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports. "It's going well," Boone said of Sanchez's rehab. "I was in the weight room with him while he was on the bike doing his conditioning and stuff, and I knew he threw [Saturday]. When he's running -- I don't know what the plan is yet for him as far as that. Hopefully [we will get him back] around that All-Star break, give or take. That's the timetable it's looking like for him."

If Sanchez meets the short end of the projected recovery timetable he received after being diagnosed with the Grade 1 right groin strain, he would theoretically be ready to go the weekend heading into the break, but Boone intimated that it's more likely the Yankees would err on the side of caution and let the catcher pick up some extra runs. With 14 home runs and 28 extra-base hits through 265 plate appearances, Sanchez has been one of the top power-hitting catchers this season, but his .190 average and .291 on-base percentage are well below his respective .260 and .337 career marks.

Higashioka went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Sunday against the Red Sox for his first big-league hit.

Higashioka joined in the Yankees' home run parade and recorded his first major-league home run against David Price. He was called up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in the wake of Gary Sanchez (groin) being placed on the disabled list and is 1-for-7 in limited playing time.

Garver went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and three RBI in Sunday's 11-10 loss to the Cubs.

Garver had been held without a home run since April 28. He hit .288 (15-for-52) with three doubles in June but somehow failed to record an RBI for the month. Garver is slashing .262/.329/.376 in 149 at-bats this season.

Maldonado is out of the lineup Sunday against the Orioles.

Maldonado will pick up a routine rest on getaway day after he was behind the plate for all 18 innings of the previous two games of the series. His absence clears a spot in the lineup for Jose Briceno, who will catch Deck McGuire in the latter's first big-league start of the season.

Vazquez is not in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees, Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston reports.

Vazquez has been much better at the plate -- he's hitting .298/.333/.526 over 57 at-bats in June -- but he still holds a .221 average and .571 OPS for the season. Sandy Leon will take over catching duties Saturday and bat eighth.