MLB Player News

Zavala (wrist) was activated from the 7-day disabled list Wednesday, James Fegan of The Athletic Chicago reports.

Zavala will look to continue his solid start at Double-A Birmingham after returning to health. He's already collected 15 extra-base hits and 26 RBI through 38 games.

Stassi will take on a bigger role after the Astros placed Brian McCann on the disabled list with soreness in his right knee, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports. In the first game as Houston's primary catcher, he went 1-for-5 in Tuesday's 6-5 loss to the Yankees.

Manager A.J. Hinch confirmed that Stassi will take on the majority of the workload behind the plate with McCann unavailable. The 27-year-old catcher, who ranks fourth among rookies with an .879 OPS, has made himself into a better hitter and defender. "(He) has swung the bat probably better than we even expected, given that he's been predominantly a soft platoon/backup player or backup catcher," Hinch said. "It's hard to contribute consistently in that role so I've been very happy with that. His receiving has gotten so much better over the last year or two and we're seeing it impact pitchers, seeing it impact balls and strikes, and that's a tribute to the work he's put in." Tim Fedorowicz was called up from Triple-A Fresno to provide some insurance, but his lack of familiarity with the starters will limit his opportunities.

Leon went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a home run, three RBI and two runs scored in Tuesday's 8-3 win over the Blue Jays.

Leon had an abysmal .111 batting average on May 4, but has used a hot May to tack on another 143 points. He's gone 13-for-31 (.419) with three doubles, two homers and six RBI over his last 10 contests to raise his average to .254. Christian Vazquez, who remains the primary starter, is hitting just .194, but the Red Sox have had enough offense thus far to cover up for his weak bat. Leon will continue to be the backup, getting a couple of starts per week until such time that Vazquez's paucity of offense becomes an issue.

Grandal is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Phillies.

Grandal will get the night off after starting the previous three games behind the dish. Austin Barnes will start at catcher and hit eighth in his stead Tuesday.

Plawecki is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Braves.

Plawecki will give way to the hot-hitting Devin Mesoraco behind the dish after collecting a trio of hits and catching all nine innings in his first game back from the disabled list Monday. The two will likely settle into a timeshare behind the plate now that Plawecki is healthy.

Barnhart's last five starts have come with him batting second in the lineup, where he has been 8-for-25, albeit with no walks against four strikeouts.

Typically Barnhart is a pretty patient hitter, as he carries an 11.0% walk rate this year, though many of his walks in the past have come when he's been batting eighth in the lineup. If he can remain in this spot in the lineup, however, he should score more runs batting in front of Joey Votto and Scooter Gennett.

Vazquez is not in Tuesday's lineup against Toronto, Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston reports.

Vazquez will get a breather with Sandy Leon batting eighth and taking over the catching duties in his place. The 27-year-old backstop is 8-for-36 with one RBI and a double over the course of his last 10 games.

Gomes is not in Tuesday's starting lineup against the White Sox.

Gomes will get the day off as Roberto Perez is slated to take over behind the dish and bat eighth. In his last 10 games, Gomes is batting just .189 with one home run and 11 strikeouts.

Plawecki went 3-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored and an RBI in a win over the Braves during the second game of Monday's doubleheader.

After being activated from the disabled list earlier in the day, Plawecki quickly demonstrated that he's 100 percent after recovering from a fracture in his left hand. Devin Mesoraco has looked good since joining the Mets in Plawecki's absence, posting a .261/.358/.630 slash line with five homers in 15 games, so the 27-year-old should split time behind the plate equally with his new teammate -- just as Plawecki was doing with Travis d'Arnaud (elbow) before both catchers got hurt.

Mesoraco went 2-for-3 with a home run, two RBI, two runs scored and a walk in the first game of Monday's doubleheader versus Atlanta.

Mesoraco drove in a run the easy way during the first inning by walking with the bases loaded. He also homered in the ninth to give the Mets a 3-2 lead that the bullpen would later surrender. Mesoraco has been on a hot streak of late, reaching base in each of his last five games and lifting his batting average to .241. He was batting a dismal .203 as of May 18.