MLB Player News

Mejia will serve as the Indians' designated hitter and bat eighth Monday against the White Sox.

Both of the Tribe's top two catchers, Yan Gomes and Roberto Perez, have struggled at the dish for the balance of the season, but Perez in particular has heated up of late to become a key part of the Indians' 11-game winning streak. As a result, it's not expected that Mejia, one of the top catching prospects in all of baseball, will be in store for much duty behind the plate in September, but with Edwin Encarnacion receiving the day off to rest, manager Terry Francona will hand the 21-year-old his first career start in the majors. Mejia had previously appeared as a pinch hitter in two contests, going 0-for-2 with a run scored.

Perez is in the starting lineup Monday against Detroit.

Perez will shoulder the catching duties for a second straight day, proving his hot bat is being noticed by manager Terry Francona. The 28-year-old is more than capable of holding his own defensively, so contributing offensively like he has lately should allow Perez to see more playing time down the stretch.

Plawecki will bat fifth and start at catcher Monday against the Phillies.

With Wilmer Flores unavailable due to a broken nose, the Mets don't have many viable middle-of-the-order options remaining on the roster, so Plawecki will slot into a more prominent spot in the lineup than he's received in his more recent appearances. Plawecki has earned the upgrade through his impressive play of late, which could soon allow him to usurp the struggling Travis d'Arnaud for the top spot on the depth chart at catcher. Since being recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on Aug. 19, Plawecki has posted an .805 OPS while striking out just three times in 31 at-bats.

Gomes is out of the lineup Monday against Detroit.

Gomes will take a seat for a second straight day while Roberto Perez handles the backstop duties. The latter has been heating up at the dish, and with Francisco Mejia part of the expanded roster, Gomes may very well see his playing time cut significantly down the stretch.

D'Arnaud is out of the lineup Monday against the Phillies.

With the Mets playing their second consecutive day game, d'Arnaud will be given a chance to rest up while Kevin Plawecki handles catching duties. D'Arnaud, who is batting just .194 over his last 10 games, could be at risk of falling into a timeshare behind the plate with Plawecki the rest of the season. Since being recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on Aug. 19, Plawecki is slashing .290/.353/.452.

Sanchez will begin serving a three-game suspension Monday for his role in a brawl between the Yankees and Tigers on Aug. 24, Sweeny Murti of Sports Radio 66 WFAN reports.

Sanchez was originally slapped with a four-game suspension, but it was appealed down to three games. He'll be eligible to return for the weekend series against the Rangers on Friday. In the meantime, Austin Romine and Erik Kratz will share duties behind the dish.

Perez went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a walk in Sunday's 11-1 shellacking of the Tigers.

Much like he did last year, the backup catcher is heating up late in the campaign. Since the start of August, Perez is hitting .317 with three home runs and 14 RBI through 15 games. His lack of consistent playing time makes him unusable in most leagues, but Perez is worth deploying in daily formats as long as he remains hot.

Stassi (hand) will be activated from the 10-day disabled list Monday, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Stassi wrapped up a three-game rehab assignment Friday with Double-A Corpus Christi, during which he recorded four hits -- including two home runs -- in nine at-bats. Suffice to say, his left hand doesn't appear to be presenting any issues and shouldn't impact his availability when he rejoins the Astros, though it's unlikely Stassi will see much usage behind No. 1 catcher Brian McCann.

Vazquez is out of the lineup Sunday against the Yankees, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

He'll cede catching duties to Sandy Leon after starting three of the previous four contests. With a .330/.382/.489 batting line since the All-Star break, Vazquez is finally starting to gain a little separation in the job battle with Leon.

Realmuto is out of the lineup Sunday against the Phillies, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Realmuto has made six straight starts, alternating between first base and catcher over the last four games. He'll ride the pine for the series finale, however, as A.J. Ellis will get the nod behind the plate, while Tomas Telis draws the start at first base. Realmuto was 1-for-5 at the plate Saturday, though he did help fantasy owners by stealing two bases.