MLB Player News

The American League unveiled the following batting order for Tuesday's All-Star game: Shortstop Derek Jeter, left fielder Mike Trout, second baseman Robinson Cano, first baseman Miguel Cabrera, right fielder Jose Bautista, designated hitter Nelson Cruz, center fielder Adam Jones, third baseman Josh Donaldson and catcher Salvador Perez.

Red Sox rookie catcher Christian Vasquez went 2 for 4 with a double, two RBI and a run scored in Sunday's 11-0 win over the Astros. Vasquez is 5 for 11 with five RBI and three runs scored in three games since being called up a few days ago.

Indians catcher Yan Gomes drove in all three runs in his team's 3-2 win Sunday over the White Sox, including the go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning. Gomes is up to 12 homers and 36 RBI after his 2-for-4 performance.

Gomes closed the first half with three homers and six RBI in his last seven games. He's hitting .261/.306/.436 in 287 at-bats.

The Red Sox have a plan for rookie catcher Christian Vazquez, who should see plenty of time in the second half of the season, reports ESPN.com.

Manager John Farrell told reporters Vazquez will catch three out of every five games, matching up with Rubby De La Rosa, John Lackey and Clay Buchholz, while veteran David Ross takes Jake Peavy and Jon Lester. 

Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez made a big impact in his second major-league game Friday, an 8-3 win over the Astros.

Vazquez went hitless in his major-league debut Wednesday, but made up for it Friday. He was 3 for 4 with two runs scored and two doubles. He drove in runs with each of those doubles, finishing the game with three driven in during the win.

Vazquez is now 3 for 7 in his first two major-league games. 

Reds catcher Devin Mesoraco slugged his 16th home run Friday against the Pirates. 

Mesoraco's big fly sparked the team's eighth inning comeback. He worked a four-pitch at-bat from Tony Watson. On the final pitch, Mesoraco belted a 96 mph fastball out to left for the solo shot. He finished 1 for 4, with one run scored and one RBI. 

The Reds optioned catcher Tucker Barnhart back to Triple-A Louisville Friday, just a few days after he was called up. He appeared in two games, going 2 for 5. 

The Indians got a big performance from catcher Roberto Perez in his major-league debut Thursday, in a 9-3 win over the Yankees.

Perez reached base three times in the win, going 2 for 3 with a walk. He added a home run and two RBI, while scoring twice.

Perez spent two days on the roster before getting his first action, so it is not clear how much playing time he might find moving forward. 

It's too early to tell anything -- most any player can go off for a two-week stretch -- but the timing of this particular hot streak and the history of the player in question make it too enticing to ignore.

In 13 games since returning from the minors, Mets catcher Travis d'Arnaud is hitting .300 (15 for 50) with three home runs and a .900 OPS.

No, his plate discipline hasn't been especially good -- he has 13 strikeouts to just three walks during that stretch -- but that wasn't exactly his calling card in the minors either. He was just a good hitter, routinely hitting well over .300 with plus power.

It's worth noting he hit .436 (24 for 55) with six home runs and a 1.384 OPS during his stint in the minors, but that was at Triple-A Las Vegas of the Pacific Coast League, a level he dominated while in the Blue Jays organization as well. Still, it all plays into d'Arnaud's theory that he was simply trying to do too much in his previous stints in the majors.

So a former top prospect who struggles to find his footing in the majors gets sent down, rediscovers his stroke and comes back to put up the numbers everyone from him all along. Again, it's not an open-and-shut case, but if you need a catcher (perhaps if you lost Yadier Molina), it's reason enough to act.

Royals catcher Salvador Perez came through in a big way Wednesday against the Rays.

With his team trailing by two, Perez stepped to the plate with two men on in the top of the ninth inning. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Perez belted a 91 mph fastball out to left for the go-ahead blast. The Royals hung on to win the game, making Perez the hero.

Perez finished 2 for 5, with two runs scored and three RBI.