MLB Player News

Jansen will start at catcher and bat ninth Sunday against the Rays.

Jansen was excluded from the lineup for the past two days in favor of Luke Maile, who went 3-for-6 with a home run and two RBI in those contests. The Blue Jays still appear to favor Jansen as their primary catcher, but the youngster hasn't provided the sort of impact at the dish the team was likely counting on heading into the season. Entering the series finale, Jansen has managed only five hits in 35 at-bats while striking out 25.6 percent of the time.

Vazquez went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and four RBI in Saturday's 9-5 loss to Baltimore.

In a rare display of power, Vazquez nearly accounted for all of Boston's offense. The nine-hole hitter is not known for this type of production and is hitting just .229 after the eruption.

Perez is not starting Saturday against the Royals, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

Perez has just four hits in 27 at-bats this season. Kevin Plawecki gets the call behind the plate.

Jansen remains on the bench Saturday against the Rays.

Jansen started nine of the Blue Jays' first 13 games but has now sat for two straight. It's not out of the question that his playing time could take a hit, as he's hit just .143/.231/.171 on the season. Luke Maile gets the call for the second straight time behind the plate.

McCann went 1-for-3 with a walk, a solo home run and two runs scored in Friday's 9-6 win over the Yankees.

McCann extended a hitting streak to five games with his first home run of the season. The 28-year-old backstop is hitting .318 over six games. He and Welington Castillo are splitting playing time at catcher, with McCann serving as the battery mate for starters Carlos Rodon and Lucas Giolito.

Maile went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run Friday against Tampa Bay.

Maile left the yard in the seventh inning with a runner on base, cutting Toronto's deficit to two runs. He'd missed the last few contests while battling neck stiffness, but the 28-year-old backstop turned in a solid performance in his first game back. He's now 4-for-14 at the plate through five matchups in 2019.

Murphy will bat eighth and is catching Friday night against the Astros, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Murphy went 0-for-3 in Thursday's matchup against the Royals, but he'll get another shot to start Friday evening. He'll catch Wade LeBlanc in the series opener.

Narvaez isn't in Friday's lineup against the Astros, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

With Tom Murphy set to pick up his second straight start behind the dish, Narvaez will once again head to the bench. He entered Thursday's contest as a pinch hitter and came through with a base knock.

Jansen is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Rays.

Jansen started the last four games behind the plate as Luke Maile dealt with neck stiffness, but the latter makes his return to the lineup Friday. Jansen is 5-for-38 with one double through his first 10 games of the season.

Maile (neck) is back in the lineup Friday against the Rays.

Maile had been battling neck stiffness and hadn't played in a week. He's just 2-for-10 in limited action at the plate this season.