MLB Player News

Perez will start at catcher and bat eighth Wednesday in Colorado.

Perez will give Yan Gomes a rest in the afternoon affair. The backup catcher is slashing just .136/.227/.167 through 75 plate appearances this year, but Perez is a decent punt play at hitter-friendly Coors Field on Wednesday.

Gomes is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Rockies, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Gomes has hit safely in his past three starts, but he'll head to the bench for the afternoon series finale in Colorado. Roberto Perez will head behind the plate to fill in for him.

Maile went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in Tuesday's loss to Oakland, ending his five-game hitting streak.

With Russell Martin having neck issues of late, Maile has enjoyed increased playing time. Starting six of the team's last seven games behind the dish, Maile has gone 6-for-20 (.300) with a home run. Unfortunately for the 26-year-old, the counting stats haven't been there, and he's struck out in 40 percent of his at-bats over the stretch.

Barnhart has hit .284/.433/.766 in 67 at-bats since late April.

The switch-hitting catcher has slowly been losing playing time ever since former All-Star Devin Mesoraco made his 2017 debut off the disabled list in late April. However, since then, Barnhart's batting average on the season has increased from .250 to .268 with an on-base percentage increase from .297 to .333. He remains the backup catcher in Cincinnati for the time being, but either the competition or the extra rest time has allowed him to produce better than what he did over the first month of the season.

Perez leads all AL catchers in All-Star voting for the second straight week, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

The backstop has his sights set on a fifth All-Star Game appearance. Perez is a perennial Gold Glove contender, and his offense continues to be among the elite at his position. Through 54 games in 2017, he has 11 home runs and 32 RBI, both of which are most among MLB catchers.

D'Arnaud accounted for the final run of Tuesday's 10-8 loss to the Rangers with a ninth-inning solo homer, his only hit in five at-bats on the evening.

While d'Arnaud isn't sitting on particularly shiny numbers, especially that .231 average, there's some hope to be found in his batting line. The 28-year-old catcher has a horribly low .217 BABIP despite dispensing line drives and hard-hit balls at the highest rates of his career, and his .253 ISO is easily a career best. There's hope yet for his long-suffering fantasy owners.

McCann's (hand) rehab assignment at Triple-A Toledo is only expected to last "a couple of days," Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

McCann would have been ready to come off the disabled list Tuesday, but since the Tigers aren't expected to face a left-handed starting pitcher until their weekend series with the Red Sox, the backstop's services wouldn't have been needed. He'll instead get a couple games in with Toledo before being activated, at which point he'll settle into the smaller portion of a platoon at catcher with Alex Avila.

Stewart (hamstring) resumed baseball activities Tuesday, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Stewart has been sidelined since the end of May, but it seems like he's finally progressed in his rehab, meaning that a rehab assignment may come in the next week or so barring any setbacks. Until he's ready for full action again, Elias Diaz will act as the backup catcher behind Francisco Cervelli.

Collins, 22, is hitting .230/.392/.455 with eight home runs and 26 RBI through 50 games for High-A Winston-Salem.

The batting average is not ideal, but Collins has shown superb patience at the dish, drawing 43 walks thus far in 2017. In addition, he has cracked eight home runs with his left-handed bat, flashing his 20-homer potential. With improvements in the field as well, Collins remains one of the better prospects for the White Sox.

Mesoraco is not in the lineup Tuesday against the Cardinals, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Mesoraco will get his second night off in three days as the Reds continue to give him ample rest time in order to keep him healthy. Tucker Barnhart will assume catching duties in his stead.