MLB Player News

Barnes (hand) is out of Tuesday's lineup against the Diamondbacks.

He took a foul ball of his hand in Sunday's game, but his absence from Tuesday's lineup could simply be a matter of him being the No. 2 catcher, and Yasmani Grandal getting a start against righty Zack Godley, which is not unexpected. Continue to consider Barnes day-to-day for now.

Grandal (back) is starting behind the dish and hitting fifth Tuesday against the Diamondbacks.

As expected, Grandal is back in action after missing one game with a sore back. He is hitting .279/.311/.519 with eight home runs over his last 129 at-bats.

Sanchez will start at catcher and bat cleanup Tuesday against the Blue Jays.

Manager Joe Girardi held Sanchez out of the lineup in the Yankees' previous game Sunday against the Indians, citing the 24-year-old's lack of defensive polish as the reason for his benching. The Yankees won't pull the plug on using Sanchez as their primary catcher, but his MLB-leading 12 passed balls have made him a defensive liability this season, and raise questions about his ability to stick behind the plate long term. If Sanchez fails to show much improvement in blocking balls in subsequent starts, he could end up seeing more usage at designated hitter, where the Yankees have a temporary opening with Matt Holliday (back) on the disabled list.

Vazquez is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Rays, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Vazquez will take a seat for the second straight game after starting seven consecutive contests behind the dish while Sandy Leon rested his injured knee. Now that Leon is healthy, the two should resume splitting duties behind the dish, though Vazquez should have the slight upper hand.

Rupp will start at catcher and bat eighth Tuesday against the Braves.

With Andrew Knapp (hand) landing on the 10-day disabled list earlier Tuesday, Rupp looks bound to handle primary catching duties for the Phillies until Knapp is cleared to return. Rupp will collect his fifth start in six games Tuesday after going 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and RBI in Sunday's series finale against the Rockies.

Manager Dave Roberts said he expects Grandal (back) to start in Tuesday's series opener against the Diamondbacks, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Grandal ended up sitting out Sunday's win over the Mets after he was pulled early in the previous contest with back spasms. The day out of the lineup plus Monday's off day is expected to be all that Grandal needs to heal up, so if he's in fact included in the starting nine Tuesday, he should represent a safe fantasy option during the Dodgers' six-game week.

Perez (intercostal) said he is unsure of his timetable to return, as he's still experiencing pain, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Manager Ned Yost said Perez is feeling better than he did Sunday, according to Joel Goldberg of Fox Sports Kansas City, but he's apparently still hurting when he swings and misses, so the Royals will wait for that to subside before moving forward with the backstop's rehab. A clearer timetable for his return should become available once Perez is able to take part in baseball activities with no issues.

Barnhart will start at catcher and bat eighth Monday against the Padres, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Though Devin Mesoraco was able to return last week from a multi-game absence due to a knee injury, he left the team Monday to witness the birth of his child and was placed on the paternity list, meaning he could be unavailable for the next three games. That should allow Barnhart to enjoy another full slate of starts this week, which has been par for the course of late. Monday's game will mark the 10th time in 12 contests that Barnhart has been behind the dish.

Mesoraco was placed on the paternity list Monday.

This helps explain Mesoraco's absence from the lineup for a second straight contest. He'll be away from the team for a maximum of three days, so he should be back with the big club before Thursday's series finale. In the meantime, Tucker Barnhart will serve as the Reds' primary backstop, while pitcher Austin Brice was recalled from Triple-A in a corresponding move.

Mesoraco is not in the lineup Monday against the Padres.

The injury-riddled catcher will head to the bench for a second straight game in an attempt to keep him healthy for the rest of the season. Tucker Barnhart will again take over behind the dish for Mesoraco.