MLB Player News

Perez is not in the lineup Friday for the second straight day, according to Joel Goldberg of FOX Sports Kansas City.

Perez has hit just .199 since the All-Star break and the Royals have been eliminated from playoff contention, so manager Ned Yost decided to give his regular catcher two days off in a row. Drew Butera will get another start behind the plate Friday night.

Leon is out of Thursday's lineup against the Yankees, Evan Drellich of the Boston Herald reports.

Although he's notched a .312/.370/.482 line for the season, Leon's production at the plate has been rather forgettable as of late. Over the last 14 games, he's gone just 3-for-38 (.067) with 13 strikeouts. Ryan Hanigan will start at catcher for Boston when they face CC Sabathia on Thursday.

Perez is not in the lineup for Thursday's matchup against the Twins.

Perez has managed to go just 2-for-17 over the last four games, bringing his batting average down to .245 for the season. Drew Butera will start behind the dish while Perez gets the night off.

Casali homered, in a 2-for-4 game with two runs scored Tuesday against the White Sox.

Casali has an atrocious .175/.257/.327 batting line but has shown real power this season. He has eight home runs in 81 games after mashing 10 homers in just 38 games last season for the Rays. He strikes out too much to ever hit for average, but a catcher with his pop is likely to find work for quite a while.

Sanchez went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer and a walk in Tuesday's 6-4 win over the Red Sox.

Sanchez hit his 20th homer in just his 51st career major league game, tying Wally Berger in 1930 as the fastest player to reach that milestone. His first-inning blast set the tone in a game that saw three Yankees to go deep off Red Sox starter David Price. The youngster has a remarkable .316/.390/.701 line this season.

Thole has just four at-bats in September, far fewer than in any other month this season.

With R.A. Dickey seemingly moved to the bullpen for good, Thole -- Dickey's personal catcher -- is no longer needed to make spot starts behind the plate. His role on the team has been reduced to its lowest point of the season, and considering he lacks fantasy relevance even when seeing regular time, it's hard to imagine a fantasy league where Thole's worth owning.

Perez (knee) is back in the lineup Saturday against the Tigers, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Perez got the day off Friday to rest his troublesome knee, but the absence looks to have been more precautionary than anything else. He'll return to his usual spot behind the plate Saturday and bat fifth in the order against Detroit's Daniel Norris.

Gomes (wrist) has resumed throwing recently less than a week after being ruled out for the remainder of the season, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Gomes has responded well in his first week since fracturing his wrist but it's far too soon to know if he'll be able to make it back in time should the Indians make a lengthy postseason run.

Sanchez went 2-for-4 with a double in Friday's 9-0 loss to the Blue Jays.

It was a miserable night overall for the Yankees offense, but Sanchez seems to be virtually immune to any struggles at the moment. The two-hit effort was his fourth multi-hit outing in the last eight games, and also represented the seventh contest overall in which he'd hit safely over that span. Sanchez's stellar rookie season includes a .337/.413/.738 line, along with 19 homers and 38 RBI.

Perez is getting a day off Friday to rest a sore knee, MLB.com's Jeffrey Flanagan reports.

He was a late scratch Friday, and now we know why. With the Royals eliminated from postseason contention, it's possible that Perez could receive an extra day off or two down the stretch, but he is expected to be back in the lineup Saturday. Drew Butera is starting in his place Friday.