MLB Player News

Perez (hamstring) is making deliberate progress from his injury and manager Kevin Cash concedes he may not return before the end of the regular season, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The rookie backstop hit the disabled list Aug. 31, and there was relative certainty as recently as last weekend about a return before the end of the season. The latest news implies differently, although Perez still has over two weeks to regain full health. Jesus Sucre, Nick Ciuffo and Adam Moore are all candidates to handle catching duties while Perez remains sidelined.

Hedges went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 5-4 win over Seattle.

Hedges homered for the second time over the last three games, upping his season total to 13. The 26-year-old had been alternating two-game starts with rookie Francisco Mejia, but the presence of the designated hitter on the road against the Mariners allowed both backstops to remain in the lineup during the two-game series. Hedges will return to an even split down the stretch, but his career-best .446 slugging percentage (seventh among catchers with at least 250 at-bats) should be enough for him to remain relevant at the catcher position.

McCann went 1-for-4 with a solo homer in Wednesday's loss to the Astros.

McCann took Gerrit Cole deep in the fourth inning to put the Tigers up 2-1, though the Astros would respond with four runs of their own in the next inning en route to the win. The backstop has taken a bit of a step back in his fourth full season, slashing just .221/.268/.321 with eight homers through 107 games after slashing .253/.318/.415 with 13 homers across 106 games in 2017.

Stallings went 2-for-5 with three RBI in Wednesday's 4-3 win over St. Louis.

He's serving as Francisco Cervelli's backup while Elias Diaz (hamstring) remains sidelined. Stallings, who is best known for his steady defense, hit a surprising .285 in 256 Triple-A at-bats in 2018 (well above his career mark of .252). The 28-year-old has made just 19 appearances in the majors over the last three seasons.

Garver (head) was removed from Wednesday's game against the Yankees for precautionary reasons, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Garver exited the game after two innings after taking a foul ball off his mask. Initial tests determined the backstop didn't suffer a concussion, though the team may want to play it safe and send him for additional tests before clearing him to return. Willians Astudillo replaced him behind the dish.

Grandal went 3-for-5 with a double and three RBI in Wednesday's win over the Reds.

Grandal put the Dodgers up 2-1 with his run-scoring double on a fan interference call. He added a pair of RBI singles in the fifth and sixth innings as the Dodgers scored eight runs over three innings en route to the win. The backstop is now in the midst of a modest three-game hit streak -- going 5-for-11 with a pair of doubles and a homer in those contests -- after starting the month 1-for-13.

Diaz (hamstring) has been cleared to resume running and he caught a few bullpen sessions Wednesday, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports.

Diaz is expected to test the hamstring on the bases this weekend in Milwaukee. There had been talk of Diaz possibly missing the rest of the season, but it looks like he has a good chance to return to his backup role before the end of the campaign.

Vazquez is out of the lineup for the third straight game Wednesday against the Blue Jays, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

Sandy Leon will make his third consecutive start behind the plate and seems to be the starter at the moment. It's hard to call either backstop a fantasy asset, as Leon has hit .186/.244/.293 while Vazquez has posted a .212/.255/.297 line, but Leon at least seems to be the one getting the at-bats at the moment.

Plawecki is not in the lineup for the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Marlins.

Plawecki sits after starting five of the last six games. With two games Wednesday, it's very likely he'll be back in the lineup for the nightcap. Tomas Nido will start the first game of the twin bill.

Gomes is not in the lineup versus the Rays on Wednesday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Roberto Perez will spell Gomes behind the plate during the series finale. During Tuesday's victory, Gomes went 2-for-4 with a solo home run.