MLB Player News

Perez went 1-for-4 with a grand slam in Thursday's loss to the Orioles.

Perez's grand slam looked to be the beginning of another huge output for the Royals, but they only managed two runs the rest of the game. According to Dave Holtzman of FOX Sports Kansas City, Perez is the first American League player to hit a grand slam on his birthday since Hideki Matsui accomplished that feat with the Yankees in 2008. Perez is slashing a strong .288/.319/.515 through 17 games this season. He and the Royals will continue their road trip Friday with a series against the division-rival Indians.

Stassi went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's win over the Athletics.

The solo shot -- Stassi's third homer of the year -- knotted up the score at 1-1 in a game Houston would eventually go on to win 4-1. The catcher is now hitting .273 and has multi-hit efforts in two straight, but he doesn't see regular enough at-bats to warrant much consideration outside of deeper leagues.

Contreras went 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI and two runs scored in Wednesday's win over the Marlins.

The young catcher had been in a slump, as he came into Wednesday 2-for-24 over his previous six games. However, he's now riding a modest three-game hitting streak, and perhaps the three-hit outburst is a sign of a hot stretch on the horizon.

Vazquez is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Yankees, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Vazquez will receive a standard day off for maintenance purposes after going 1-for-4 during Tuesday's defeat. Sandy Leon will catch Rick Porcello and bat ninth in the order.

Maldonado is not in the lineup Wednesday in Colorado.

The veteran catcher is hitting .218 through 24 games, exactly in line with his career mark. Rene Rivera will start in his place Wednesday.

Realmuto is out of the lineup against the Cubs on Wednesday, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

Realmuto will receive a rare day off following 15 straight starts as Bryan Holaday gets the nod behind the plate for Wednesday's series finale. Expect Realmuto back in the lineup Thursday.

Gomes is out of the lineup against the Brewers on Wednesday.

Roberto Perez will catch Carlos Carrasco during the second game of a two-game set in Milwaukee after Gomes started the past two contests. Over 24 appearances this year, Gomes is hitting .244/.323/.430 with four home runs and eight RBI, to go along with a career-high 35.4 percent strikeout rate.

Smith was placed on the 7-day disabled list at Double-A Tulsa on Tuesday due to an undisclosed injury, Eric Stephen of TrueBlueLA.com reports.

Smith, who is hitting .255/.333/.447 with four home runs across 105 plate appearances with Tulsa, last appeared in a game Sunday, so that's presumably when he acquired the injury. Assuming the setback isn't a significant one, Smith should be back in action in the minimum amount of time or shortly after. Tulsa promoted Hamlet Marte from High-A Rancho Cucamonga to add more catching depth in the meantime.

Plawecki (hand) played catch Tuesday, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

It was the first time in nearly four weeks that Plawecki was able to comfortably wear a glove on his fractured left hand, amounting to a step forward in the healing process for the backstop. Plawecki will likely still require a multi-game rehab assignment at some point before being activated from the 10-day disabled list, but it's unclear when he'll be ready to report to an affiliate. With fellow catcher Travis d'Arnaud (elbow) also shut down for the season, the Mets addressed their depth behind the plate by acquiring Devin Mesoraco from the Reds on Tuesday, but it's still expected that Plawecki will serve as the primary catcher once activated.

Barnhart is not in the lineup against the Mets on Wednesday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Barnhart will receive a scheduled day off for maintenance purposes after starting the past three games, including a 3-for-4 night with a triple and one RBI on Tuesday. Tony Cruz will handle the catching duties for the series finale.