MLB Player News

Stewart, who is out of the lineup Sunday, may be a candidate for the DL due to a lower leg injury, Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.

Stewart is dealing with both knee and ankle ailments, which have effectively cost him two straight starts. If he does end up on the DL, look for Erik Kratz to become the primary backstop, while Jacob Stallings could once again get the call from Triple-A.

Perez is out of the lineup Sunday against the Phillies, Joel Goldberg of FOX Sports Kansas City reports.

Perez's day off might be for mental reasons just as much as physical, as the backstop has gone just 1-for-17 with seven strikeouts while starting each of the last four games behind the plate. With some extra time to recuperate and assess his approach at the plate, perhaps Perez will be able to close out the first half of the season on a high note.

Vazquez is out of the lineup Sunday against the Angels, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.

It's a routine off day for Vazquez, who started the Red Sox's previous four games. He recorded four base hits during those contests, but is still sitting on a sickly .226/.278/.305 slash line for the season. Sandy Leon will fill in for Vazquez at catcher.

Perez is out of the lineup Sunday against the Red Sox.

Perez had his top performance of a disappointing season in Saturday's 21-2 romp over the Red Sox, going 5-for-6 with a homer, two doubles, two runs and a whopping six RBI. While that kind of showing could help Perez cut into Jett Bandy's playing time behind the plate, Perez will pick up some rest Sunday after starting the preceding two games of the series.

Barnhart is out of the lineup Sunday against the Nationals.

Barnhart collected the game-winning hit Saturday, so he'll be rewarded with a day off Sunday afternoon. Furthermore, Saturday marked his fourth start in a row, so the backstop was likely due for a regular day of rest. Ramon Cabrera will take over behind the plate for the afternoon matchup.

D'Arnaud is not in the starting lineup Sunday against the Cubs, MLB.com's Anthony DiComo reports.

D'Arnaud has been behind the plate for three straight contests, but will give way to Rene Rivera on Sunday afternoon. The 27-year-old backstop's bat is just starting to heat up when the Mets need it most, as d'Arnaud is 5-for-9 at the plate over his last three games.

Rupp (elbow) is back in the lineup Sunday against the Royals.

Rupp collected a pair of doubles in Friday's matchup, but also left that contest with a bit of elbow soreness after getting hit with a foul ball. The ailment kept him out of Saturday's contest, but he'll return to action on Sunday afternoon, batting fifth in the order.

Barnhart had a second big game in a row Saturday, going 3-for-4 with the game-winning RBI in the 10th inning against the Nats.

Barnhart also added a stolen base and got on base a fourth time via a hit-by-pitch. He's hitting the ball with a little more authority this year, raising his ISO from .074 to .108, but even with that improvement he's a low-end offensive catcher.

D'Arnaud had two more hits Saturday and is now 8-for-17 in his last six games

D'Arnaud is 10-for-32 since coming off the disabled list and pushing for more out of the eight spot. A few more solid games and manager Terry Collins may have no choice but to move him up in the batting order.

Grandal is not in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Rockies.

A.J. Ellis will catch for starter Scott Kazmir with Grandal on the bench following back-to-back starts. It's been a struggle for Grandal through the first three months, to put it nicely, with the 27-year-old managing a .182/.293/.347 line in 58 games. The silver lining is that his ISO is just four points lower than his mark from a year ago and Grandal has been pretty unlucky on balls in play (.205 BABIP).