MLB Player News

Perez left Saturday's game in the seventh inning with thumb soreness, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Perez's early exit was considered precautionary, and it's possible he still plays Sunday. It wasn't obvious the thumb was bothering him, as he went 4-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in the contest. He's up to 23 homers in 114 games this season, which has seen him bothered by his thumb at various times since May.

Higashioka went 3-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's victory over Baltimore.

Higashikoka recorded hits in each of his first three at-bats, including a solo homer off Austin Voth in the second inning to extend New York's lead. The backstop has now collected three hits in two of his last three games and is hitting .462 over that short stretch.

O'Hoppe will sit Saturday against Texas, Sarah Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Times reports.

O'Hoppe was called up for the first time Wednesday and has alternated between starting and sitting on the bench. He's gone 2-for-7 with three strikeouts in his limited action. Kurt Suzuki starts behind the plate Saturday.

Thaiss isn't starting Saturday against the Rangers, Sarah Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Thaiss went 0-for-3 with a strikeout during Friday's win over Texas, and he'll head to the bench for the second time in the last three games. Matt Duffy is starting at first base and batting cleanup.

Murphy was removed from Saturday's game against the Mariners due to an illness, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Murphy started behind the dish Saturday and went 0-for-1 with a walk and a strikeout to begin the game. He should tentatively be considered day-to-day ahead of Sunday's series finale in Seattle.

Bethancourt will sit for the third straight game Saturday against the Astros, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Bethancourt's consecutive days off immediately follow a stretch in which he started three straight games and seven out of 10. Francisco Mejia remains the starter behind the plate Saturday.

Hedges will sit Saturday against the Royals.

Hedges has managed to start 94 games this season despite his awful .167/.241/.254 slash line, but his defense-first profile doesn't help fantasy teams. Exciting offense-first catcher prospect Bo Naylor was called up for the first time Saturday, but it will be Luke Maile who gets the nod behind the plate on this occasion.

Naylor was called up by the Guardians on Saturday, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

Naylor, whose brother Josh also plays for the Guardians, is one of the game's more interesting catching prospects. The 22-year-old doesn't have the greatest defensive reputation, though he's improved in that area this season. He's also hit .263/.392/.496 with 21 home runs and 20 steals in 118 games across the two highest levels of the minors. The Guardians have gotten a .495 OPS from Austin Hedges and a .604 OPS from Luke Maile this season, so Naylor seemingly doesn't have many obstacles to playing time, though the team could still prefer Hedges for his defense and game-calling, leaving Naylor to fight for at-bats as a designated hitter. He'll spend his first day with the big-league team watching from the bench.

Jeffers isn't starting Saturday against the Tigers.

Jeffers was productive during Friday's series opener in Detroit, going 2-for-5 with a triple, a run and an RBI. He'll head to the bench while Gary Sanchez starts behind the plate and bats seventh.

Raleigh isn't in the lineup Saturday against Oakland.

Raleigh ended the Mariners' 21-year playoff drought with a walkoff home run in the ninth inning Friday, and he'll retreat to the bench for a second consecutive game. Luis Torrens is starting behind the dish and batting cleanup Saturday.