Michael Pérez - Page 7 - MLB News, Rumors, & Updates | FOX Sports

Scores run in start Perez went 0-for-2 with a run scored Tuesday in the Rays' 5-1 win over the Red Sox.

Impact Starting for just the third time in 11 games, Perez cracked the lineup while Mike Zunino received a day off. Though Perez came around to score after being hit by a pitch, he continued the general trend of Rays catchers offering little production at the plate. Zunino is hitting just .087 on the season, while Perez has gone hitless through his first six at-bats of the campaign.

AUGUST 5, 2020 • ROTOWIRE

Joins 40-man roster Smith was added to the Rays' 40-man roster Tuesday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Impact Smith has been competing for a potential third catcher spot throughout camp, and he was added to the 40-man roster after Colin Poche (elbow) was placed on the 45-day injured list. The 32-year-old will begin the season as Tampa Bay's third catcher behind Mike Zunino and Michael Perez, per Juan Toribio of MLB.com.

JULY 21, 2020 • ROTOWIRE

Showing well at camp Perez is making a strong bid for the backup catcher job in summer camp, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports. "[He's] a guy that is starting to come into his own," said Rays manager Kev...

Impact Perez had slugged a pair of home runs before spring training was suspended, and he's impressed thus far in summer camp with multiple strong at-bats during simulated games. That includes Tuesday, when he laced a double off the returning Tyler Glasnow. Perez is trying to ward off a couple of capable veterans in Kevan Smith and Chris Herrmann for an Opening Day roster spot, and Cash talked up the emerging backstop as a player that could take advantage of his opportunity in similar fashion to how Travis d'Arnaud did on last year's playoff team.

JULY 15, 2020 • ROTOWIRE

Bounces back in second sim game Poche tossed a scoreless inning in Sunday's simulated game and looked much sharper than in his first outing Thursday, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Impact Poche needed just 13 pitches to get through the trio of Mike Brosseau and Joey Wendle, inducing flyouts from the pair before recording a swinging strikeout of Michael Perez. Poche mentioned he'd been working on upping his use of the slider after his first sim game Thursday, but he'd been notably less precise with his control in that appearance. The 26-year-old southpaw is looking to solidify his bullpen spot after a rocky six-appearance Grapefruit League stint (7.94 ERA across 5.2 innings).

JULY 13, 2020 • ROTOWIRE

Bat could be key to roster spot Both Smith's handedness and bat could give him an upper hand in the backup catcher job battle, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Impact Smith is battling Michael Perez and Chris Herrmann to slot in behind starting backstop Mike Zunino, and he has a couple of factors that may ultimately tip the scales in his favor. One is the fact Smith is the only right-handed hitter among the trio, and another is that he's coming off a 2019 season with the Angels during which he posted career highs in exit velocity (89.4 mph) and expected batting average (.294). Furthermore, while Smith's average slumped to a serviceable .251 last season, it's worth noting he'd generated much stronger .283 and .292 figures in that category in 2017 and 2018, respectively. The 31-year-old was hitting .263 (5-for-19) with four RBI and five runs across nine Grapefruit League games before spring training was suspended.

MARCH 21, 2020 • ROTOWIRE