MLB Player News

McCann is not in the lineup against the A's on Wednesday.

McCann will receive a typical day off following a pair of starts behind the plate, including a 2-for-5 showing with a triple and three RBI during Tuesday's affair. John Hicks is set to handle the catching duties in his stead.

D'Arnaud went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's loss to the Marlins.

The 28-year-old catcher has now tied his previous career high with 13 homers. D'Arnaud can never seem to stay healthy for long, but he's shown this season he's still capable of supplying a bit of power when he is on the field.

McCann went 2-for-5 with a triple, three RBI and a run in Tuesday's loss to Oakland.

It's been a bit of an up-and-down season for McCann, but he's already set a new career mark in homers (13), while Tuesday's effort brought his RBI total to a career-high-tying 48. The 27-year-old catcher has improved his stats across the board this season, and it's not out of the question to expect further growth next season as he continues settling into the No. 1 role behind the plate in Detroit.

Realmuto went 3-for-5 with a double and a walkoff solo homer against the Mets on Tuesday. He scored two runs.

Although Realmuto is currently sitting on what's easily a new career-high homer total, he'd gone 21 straight appearances without one before this little breakout, a span in which he hit just .209/.244/.326 with a 2:21 BB:K. The big night may serve to get him going again, so Realmuto's fantasy owners can only hope that he bounces back to showing off his strong hit tool and decent pop in short order.

Grandal went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Tuesday's 6-2 loss at Philadelphia.

Grandal opened the scoring with a third-inning solo shot to left, taking advantage of Citizens Bank Park's league-leading 1.4 home run park factor. He also demonstrated a patient approach against talented right-hander Aaron Nola, tying for a team high with 17 pitches faced. The catcher has now reached the 20-homer mark in consecutive seasons.

Perez (intercostal) is in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Blue Jays, Mike Wilner of Sportsnet 590 The Fan reports.

Perez has not taken the field since tweaking his side injury last Thursday, but he was expected to return to action Tuesday, and the Royals' lineup confirms he will indeed do just that. Perez is an ironman when healthy, but the Royals may look to take it easy with him the rest of the way, particularly if they are eliminated from playoff contention.

Barnhart is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Cardinals.

Barnhart will get the day off after catching five straight games, going 4-for-16 (.250) with a pair of extra-base hits over that span. Stuart Turner will step in behind the dish in his stead, though Barnhart should continue to see the bulk of the starts down the stretch.

Diaz went 1-for-3 with a double against the Brewers on Monday.

The 26-year-old has played complete games for Pittsburgh in 13 of the team's last 16 contests as he gains experience for 2018. Diaz, who is slashing .234/.250/.340 during his September run (48 plate appearances), figures to see fairly regular playing time next year while serving as the fragile Francisco Cervelli's backup. He's hit .275 against lefties, albeit small sample (41 plate appearances), and could become a streaming option versus southpaws.

Vazquez made his first start of the season at designated hitter Monday and went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in Boston's 10-8 extra-inning win over Baltimore.

September's roster expansion allows for such luxuries as using a hot-hitting catcher at DH. Vazquez has maintained a credible bat all season, but in the second half is slashing a hefty .344/.387/.508. Those numbers far outpace his career marks, and have led manager John Farrell to move Vazquez up in the batting order.

Collins finished the 2017 at Double-A Birmingham, posting an .893 OPS over 12 games with the Barons.

Collins came out of college with a reputation as a sure-thing bat with questions surrounding his defense -- however, his season played out the opposite way. He batted just .224 while striking out 27.3 percent of the time over his 471 plate appearances. It's not uncommon for young catchers to experience an initial dip in offense as they learn the defensive aspects of such a demanding position at the professional level. One noteworthy item that stands out is Collins walked in 18.5 percent of his plate appearances to post a .370 on-base percentage. There's nobody blocking him at the major-league level, so Collins could reach Chicago as a regular by 2019 if his defense remains on the same trajectory.