MLB Player News

Contreras will start at catcher on Monday with John Lackey as starter, Carrie Muskat of MLB.com reports.

Contreras will make his first major league start ever on Monday against the Cardinals. The 24-year-old slashed .350/.439/.591 at the Triple-A level before being recently called up. He got his first big league homer when he pinch hit on Sunday.

Contreras appeared as a pinch-hitter and launched a two-run homer to center field in Sunday's win over the Pirates.

The Cubs' latest promising young prospect was called up Friday, but he waited until Sunday to see his first action at the plate and did not disappoint. Chicago is currently carrying three catchers on the roster, but manager Joe Maddon isn't scared to use players at multiple positions and will likely find a way to get Contreras' bat into the lineup one way or another. He has prior minor league experience at several positions and should make his first start in the field in short order.

Perez went 1-for-3 with a solo homer Sunday at the Athletics.

Perez's third homer of the year gave the Angels a two-run lead in the fifth inning of a game they'd win by shutout. He's only collected four hits in his last 35 at-bats, and he's now hitting just .188 on the season.

Grandal is out of the lineup Sunday against the Brewers, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times reports.

After starting three straight games behind the plate, Grandal will give way to backup A.J. Ellis for the afternoon contest. Ellis seems likely to draw a start Monday as well, as he typically catches ace Clayton Kershaw.

Vazquez went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI in Saturday's 6-2 win over Seattle.

Vazquez has been slumping, entering Saturday's game on a 4-for-32 (.125), but had hits that contributed to runs in the fifth and sixth innings. He was given two days off and his work in the batting cage paid off for one game, but can he sustain it? Do the Red Sox have enough firepower to overcome a .220-hitting catcher? At what cost are his elite defensive skills? The question of whether or not Vazquez can hit enough to warrant being Boston's number one catcher will dog him and manager John Farrell all season.

Realmuto is out of the lineup Sunday against the Rockies, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

Following an outstanding 4-for-5, three-RBI performance Saturday, Realmuto will be granted a day off after making three straight starts behind the plate. Jeff Mathis will man the catcher spot and bat seventh in the Marlins lineup.

Realmuto went 4-for-5 with a three-run homer in a 9-6 victory over the Rockies on Saturday.

His three-run bomb gave Miami the lead for good in the fifth. This was the eighth time this season Realmuto had at least three base hits in a game, and second time he had four. He is batting .305 with four homers, 22 RBI and 24 runs in 223 at-bats this season.

Rupp is not in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Diamondbacks, Stephen Gross of the Morning Call reports.

The 27-year-old has started five of the last seven games for the Phillies and will take a day off as Carlos Ruiz mans the catching duties. Rupp went 2-for-4 with a triple and two RBI on Friday to earn his first multi-hit game since June 5. He will likely be back in the lineup for Sunday's matinee.

Vazquez was not in the lineup Friday for a second straight game and used the downtime to work more aggressively with Boston's hitting coaches, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal reports. "We felt he needed to address some things from a timing standpoint at the plate," manager John Farrell said. "He's been scuffling."

Part of the rationale to sit Vazquez stems from manager John Farrell's desire to pair Friday night's starter, Roenis Elias, with catcher Sandy Leon, as the two worked together at Triple-A Pawtucket for much of the season, but the night off also gave Vazquez more time to work with hitting coaches in an attempt to break out of a recent slump. Dating back to June 3, the young catcher is 3-for-26, dropping his season average to .209 with a .248 on-base percentage. If not for his elite defensive skills, those numbers would make Vazquez a backup catcher.

Leon went 3-for-4 with a double and run in Friday's 8-4 loss to the Mariners.

While his current pace naturally isn't sustainable over the long term, the career .206 hitter has to be relishing his season so far. Leon is now 9-for-13 on the season, leaving him with an absurd .692/.714/.923 line. He's made some impactful contact along the way, already tallying a trio of two-baggers as part of his nine hits.