MLB Player News

Stassi is locked in as the Angels' No. 2 catcher due largely to his ability to frame pitches, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

The Angels have emphasized pitch framing in recent seasons because of the boost it can give to their pitching staff. As such, the team employs two of the league's top pitch framers in Stassi and Jason Castro. While Stassi has yet to attain a primary catcher role in the big leagues, he ranks 11th in pitch framing among backstops who have caught at least 1,000 innings over the last four years, per FanGraphs.

Trevino (finger) is two weeks away from being full-go in his baseball activities, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

He was set to open the year on the injured list with a hairline fracture on his right index finger, but the delayed start to the season means he will have time to make a full recovery without missing games. He is competing for the second catcher spot behind Robinson Chirinos.

Perez was the leading candidate to win the Rays' No. 2 catcher job on the Opening Day roster before the MLB suspended its season March 12, Josh Tolentino of The Athletic reports.

Mike Zunino entered spring training secure as the Rays' top backstop, leaving Perez to battle with non-roster invitees Kevan Smith and Chris Herrmann for the backup gig. Though both Smith and Herrmann boast more MLB experience, their statuses as non-roster players likely work against them as they attempt to unseat Perez for the No. 2 job. Additionally, Perez is helped by the fact that he bats from the left side, offering the Rays more flexibility if manager Kevin Cash wants to play matchups in the late innings rather than having the right-handed Zunino play the full game.

Haase and fellow catcher Grayson Greiner could both make the team behind starter Austin Romine when the regular season is able to begin, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Haase seems to have the leg up on Greiner for the backup catcher role, but with a compacted schedule on the horizon and rosters likely being expanded to include as many as 30 players, many teams may opt to carry three catchers. It remains to be seen how playing time will shake out once the regular season is able to begin, but Haase won't have a ton of fantasy value unless he's starting more often than not.

The Red Sox may keep both Plawecki and Jonathan Lucroy if MLB expands rosters from 26 to 29 players for the first month of an abbreviated season, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

Red Sox interim manager Ron Roenicke had wavered on the notion of keeping three catchers before the coronavirus pandemic forced MLB to halt baseball. He first said he couldn't envision a scenario where the Red Sox retained three catchers, then said he was open to the idea. If MLB adopts the roster expansion as expected, Boston will have the luxury of carrying two backup catchers over the first month of the season, giving Roenicke time to evaluate which is the best fit to back up Christian Vazquez.

Ice informed the Indians of his intention to retire Sunday, Andersen Pickard of MLBDailyDish.com reports.

Ice will finish his five-year minor-league career with a .206/.309/.313 slash line, 18 home runs and 101 RBI. The 24-year-old played in a total of 271 games and spent the entire 2019 season with Double-A Akron, where he hit just .180/.294/.255. The switch-hitting catcher was selected 72nd overall in the 2016 first-year player draft by the Indians following a successful three-year stint at Oregon State.

The Cardinals optioned Knizner to Triple-A Memphis on Thursday.

Knizner is viewed within the organization as the eventual successor to Yadier Molina, but the 25-year-old will head back to the farm to begin the campaign while the veteran enters the final year of his contract. With Knizner out of the running for an Opening Day job, Matt Wieters has made the club as the Cardinals' backup catcher.

Stubbs was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock on Thursday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Stubbs impressed in his limited opportunities before Spring Training was suspended, slashing .455/.625/.727 with a homer and two steals in 16 plate appearances, but it wasn't enough for him to beat out Dustin Garneau for the job as Houston's backup catcher.

Barrera was optioned to Triple-A Fresno on Thursday, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.

This isn't all too surprising, as Barrera is buried behind a trio of veterans (Yan Gomes, Kurt Suzuki and Welington Castillo) on the depth chart. The backstop spent most of the 2019 season with Double-A Harrisburg, slashing .249/.323/.381 with eight home runs in 101 games.

Sanchez went 1-for-17 with seven strikeouts in Cactus League play. He also struggled behind the plate and was bothered by a sore back and a bout with the flu.

While Sanchez remains the top power-hitting catcher in the game, his contact issues this spring serve as a stark reminder that he hit a paltry .232 with a 28 percent strikeout rate last season. His defensive issues can be partially attributed to a new catching stance that he experimented with throughout the spring, but Sanchez has always been a below-average defender behind the dish and has struggled blocking balls in the dirt throughout his career. Still, his ability to hit balls out of the yard will keep Sanchez in the heart of the potent Yankee lineup on a regular basis, and the delay to the start of the regular season leaves no question about his availability for Opening Day.