MLB Player News

Indians catcher Yan Gomes hit his 21st home run Wednesday against the Royals.

Gomes struck in the first inning. With two men on, Gomes took an 80 mph changeup from Jason Vargas out to center for the three-run shot. He would also walk during the contest. Gomes finished 1 for 3, with one run scored and three RBI. 

Ned Yost is blaming anxiousness rather than fatigue for the slump of Royals catcher Salvador Perez. He told the Kansas City Star that Perez is trying too hard with a playoff spot on the line.

Perez has just five hits in his last 45 at-bats and has been hitless in seven of his last 11 games. His .290 on-base percentage is at its lowest point since April 23. He has a dozen strikeouts in the last 10 games.

The Indians are sitting hot-hitting catcher Yan Gomes for the second game of their doubleheader Thursday against Minnesota. Roberto Perez will be doing the crouching behind the plate instead.

Gomes homered and doubled in the opener.

Yan Gomes continued to prove himself as one of the premier hitting catchers in the game Thursday with Minnesota in town to play the Indians.

Gomes slammed a solo homer in the second inning of the doubleheader opener, then nearly repeated the feat in the third with a bases-loaded double that smacked against the wall. His stat line on the year now stands at .288/.322/.480. That slugging percentage leads all American League catchers.

The Tigers called up catcher James McCann from Triple-A Toledo Monday, upon the expansion of the active roster.

McCann, 24, hit .295/.343/.427 in 109 games at Toledo prior to making his major-league debut late in a 12-1 win over the Indians Monday. 

Royals catcher Salvador Perez went 3 for 4 with a double, a home run and three RBI in his team's 4-3 win over the Rangers Monday.

Perez delivered the first blow of the game with his RBI double in the bottom of the first, and he followed that up with a two-run home run in the third inning to put his team up 3-0. He's managed to produce multiple hits in four of his last six games, raising Perez's line to .269/.302/.424 with 16 home runs and 62 RBI in 484 at-bats.

The Indians activated catcher Yan Gomes from the concussion disabled list as expect Friday, and he is in the starting lineup for that evening's game against the Royals.

Gomes has been out just over a week as a result of the injury, so he ended up missing just the minimum amount of time. 

Indians manager Terry Francona indicated Tuesday that catcher Yan Gomes (concussion) is on track to come off the 7-day disabled list Friday, which is the first day he is eligible to return.

Gomes was able to go through sprint drills prior to Tuesday's game against the White Sox, according to The Plain Dealer.

"Yan is having a really good day," Francona said Tuesday. "His eyes look a lot clearer. I don't want to be unfair to him, but I'd surprised if he's not raring to go by Friday and Friday is his day (to be activated). Unless he has a setback, he should be ready Friday."

Indians catcher Yan Gomes slowed his baseball activity Sunday after still experiencing concussion symptoms Saturday, MLB.com reports.

"I don't think that it'll be more than [seven days], but there's phases," manager Terry Francona said Sunday. "They ramp up progressively. I think there's three or four steps, and each one you have to pass. When you pass one, you go on to the next one. How fast, it just depends on how you feel."

Gomes won't be rushed back to action as he recovers from his injury. He has hit .284/.324/.477 with 17 home runs and 53 RBI in 384 at-bats.

Royals catcher Salvador Perez was not in the team's starting lineup Saturday against the Rangers.

Perez is coming off a knee injury, but his absence is not related to the issue. Instead, manager Ned Yost said he wants to keep Perez out of the Texas heat. It should be viewed as a normal day off for Perez.