Minnesota Twins catcher Christian Vazquez (hand) is rejoining the starting nine on Saturday afternoon when the Twins continue a series against the Atlanta Braves. The veteran catcher has been kept sidelined through most of the week since suffering this injury on Monday. However, Vazquez was able to avoid a stint on the injured list. He will catch for Minnesota right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson and bat in the eight-hole. Through his first 11 games of the regular season, Vazquez has posted an underwhelming .115/.172/.192 slash line with two doubles. He has yet to go deep. Despite his poor production at the plate, Vazquez has posted a stellar 16.7 percent whiff rate and a 17.2 percent strikeout rate. Vazquez is not worth targeting in DFS this afternoon, facing Atlanta southpaw Chris Sale.

Minnesota Twins catcher Christian Vazquez will retreat to the bench for Thursday's contest against the visiting Houston Astros at Target Field. Ryan Jeffers will do the catching for right-hander Joe Ryan and will bat eighth against right-hander Hunter Brown. Vazquez and Jeffers continue to alternate playing time behind the dish for the Twins early on in 2025, which makes the 34-year-old veteran unattractive to fantasy managers outside of two-catcher or AL-only leagues. The Puerto Rican backstop has played in three games so far and is hitless in his 10 plate appearances with no walks and a strikeout. Meanwhile, Jeffers has gone 4-for-15 with an RBI, run scored, two walks and two strikeouts in four games. Jeffers offers slightly more offensive upside, but neither catcher should excite fantasy managers all that much. Jeffers has two hits in 10 career at-bats versus Brown.

According to Dan Hayes and Dennis Lin of The Athletic, the Minnesota Twins and San Diego Padres have engaged in trade discussions around catcher Christian Vazquez. The Padres do not have a proven option behind Luis Campusano on their depth chart. Earlier this offseason, the Twins acquired Diego Cartaya and Mickey Gasper to bolster their catching room. They also have Ryan Jeffers, who is slated to be the No.1 option again this offseason, leaving Vazquez potentially without a spot on the roster. The Twins have also shown interest in acquiring San Deigo right-handed pitcher Dylan Cease but would have to add several assets alongside Vazquez to acquire him. Last summer, Vazquez posted a .221/.248/.327 line with seven home runs and three stolen bases. The veteran backstop would be deployed as a reliable No.2 option behind Campusano but would only carry value in deeper NL-only formats if acquired by San Diego.

The Minnesota Twins activated outfielder Manuel Margot (groin) from the 10-day injured list and catcher Christian Vazquez from the paternity list on Wednesday and optioned infielder Michael Helman and catcher Jair Camargo to the minors in corresponding moves. Vazquez will do the catching and bat ninth on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Angels and right-hander Jack Kochanowicz at Target Field. It's a promising matchup for Vazquez and the Twins, but the 34-year-old Puerto Rican backstop has very little fantasy upside in the nine-hole. He's hitting .228 (60-for-263) on the year with seven homers and 27 RBI. Vazquez will serve as Ryan Jeffers' backup now that he's back. Margot is recovered from a mild right-groin strain and will return to reserve outfield duties that fantasy managers can ignore in mixed formats.

Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said on Saturday that he expects catchers Ryan Jeffers and Christian Vazquez to split playing time close to evenly this year. The Twins signed Vazquez to a three-year, $30 million deal last winter, but the 33-year-old veteran had the worst season of his career, hitting .223 (73-for-327) with six homers and 32 RBI, while Jeffers batted .276 (79-for-286) with a career-high-tying 14 homers and 43 RBI. As a result, the 26-year-old Jeffers became the team's starting catcher for the postseason. Vazquez worked hard on his swing and body this offseason, but Jeffers earned more playing time with a strong second half in 2023. At this point, the younger Jeffers has more offensive upside, but with an even timeshare expected, neither catcher is all that attractive for two-catcher leagues in fantasy.

Minnesota Twins veteran catcher Christian Vazquez has improved bat speed and is more fit in spring training this year as he looks to bounce back from a disappointing 2023 season after signing a three-year, $30 million deal with the team in December of 2022. Ryan Jeffers took over the lead duties behind the dish over Vazquez later in the year when Vazquez slumped and finished with a .598 OPS in the worst season of his career. The 33-year-old struck out more than ever last year and had the second-lowest slugging percentage of his career. Vazquez got a late start to his offseason workouts last year after playing in the World Series in 2022 with the Astros, and he thinks the lack of preparation affected him in his first year in Minnesota. A bounce-back is possible, but it could be more difficult with Vazquez expected to split time evenly with Jeffers in 2024.

Minnesota Twins catcher Christian Vazquez is not in the starting lineup for Game 2 of the wild-card series on Wednesday against the visiting Toronto Blue Jays. Instead, Ryan Jeffers will catch right-hander Sonny Gray and bat eighth against Blue Jays right-hander Jose Berrios. Jeffers has started the first two games of the postseason behind the plate for the Twins and he went 0-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout in the Game 1 victory, which snapped an 18-game playoff losing streak for the Twins, dating back to 2004. Jeffers will be looking to turn things around against Berrios, as he's gone 0-for-5 against him in his career to this point with four strikeouts.

Minnesota Twins third baseman Jose Miranda and catcher Christian Vazquez are getting the day off on Wednesday versus the visiting Kansas City Royals. Donovan Solano is starting at the hot corner and batting sixth, while Ryan Jeffers will do the catching and hit in the nine-hole against Royals right-hander Alec Marsh. Miranda recently returned from the minors with Royce Lewis (oblique) going on the injured list, but he's gone hitless in seven at-bats in three games. The 25-year-old has disappointed so far in 38 games for the Twins this year, hitting .209 (29-for-139) with three homers and 13 RBI. Vazquez also has done very little offensively in his first year in Minnesota, hitting .217 (38-for-175) with one homer and 17 RBI in 57 games.

Minnesota Twins catcher Christian Vazquez is out of the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Baltimore Orioles. He'll take a seat after going hitless with two walks over his last two games. The 32-year-old has underachieved this year at the plate, but has a good track record, so maybe he'll return it around. On Friday, Ryan Jeffers will draw the start behind the plate and bat seventh versus right-hander Dean Kremer.

Minnesota Twins backstop Christian Vazquez is out of the lineup for Sunday's contest against Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Angels. The 32-year-old has been productive in the past but owns just a .235/.307/.265 slash line with no homers over 31 games this season. Ryan Jeffers is behind the plate in his place and batting ninth. The former second-rounder has thump in his bat but has gone deep just once so far through 23 games with a .250 average. Fantasy managers looking for a catcher can stream Jeffers and hope he starts to find his power stroke.

Minnesota Twins catcher Christian Vazquez is out of the lineup for Saturday's showdown with the Cubs. The 32-year-old hasn't been a routine presence in the lineup of late. However, there likely aren't too many upset fantasy managers, especially since he has just one hit in May. Ryan Jeffers will be behind home plate for this one and will bat against Hayden Wesneski for the first time in his career.

Minnesota Twins catcher Christian Vazquez is not in Wednesday's starting lineup versus the Chicago White Sox and right-hander Dylan Cease. The veteran backstop went hitless with a strikeout in four trips to the plate in Tuesday's series opener and will sit against a tough right-hander in Cease. Vazquez continues to grade out as an above-average defender but he's struggled with the bat out of the gate. The 32-year-old is hitting .246 without a homer and just three doubles for his lone extra-base knocks across 77 trips to the plate on the season. He's uncharacteristically struck out in 27.3% of his plate appearances on the season as Ryan Jeffers gets the start behind the plate Wednesday and will hit ninth against Cease.

The Minnesota Twins agreed to a three-year, $30 million deal with free-agent catcher Christian Vazquez on Monday. Vazquez began last season with the Boston Red Sox before being traded to the World Series-champion Houston Astros. The 32-year-old veteran backstop hit a combined .274/.315/.399 with nine home runs, 52 RBI, 41 runs scored and a stolen base in 426 plate appearances over 119 games played. He was one of the better hitting catchers in fantasy in 2022 and had a career-high 23 long balls as recently as 2019 in Boston. With the Twins, Vazquez should become the regular catcher next season and beyond while sharing time with Ryan Jeffers at the position. In eight major-league campaigns, Vazquez has a .261/.310/.386 slash line with 55 home runs and 276 RBI.

Houston Astros first baseman Trey Mancini and catcher Christian Vazquez are in the starting lineup for Game 6 of the World Series on Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies and right-hander Zack Wheeler. Mancini is getting the nod at first and batting seventh after the Astros removed Yuli Gurriel (knee) from the World Series roster due to an injury he suffered in Game 5 on Thursday. Vazquez is serving as the designated hitter and will bat sixth in the order. Mancini has gone hitless in his first 18 playoff at-bats over seven games with an RBI, a walk and seven strikeouts. Vazquez has played in five games (two starts) this postseason and has gone 3-for-14 with two RBI, a run scored, one walk and six strikeouts.

Houston Astros catcher Christian Vazquez is not in the starting lineup on Thursday against the Texas Rangers and left-hander Cole Ragans. It will be the second straight game that Vazquez has been on the bench for. Since being traded to Houston by the Boston Red Sox at the Aug. 2 deadline, the 31-year-old backstop has just two hits in 12 at-bats over six games. Overall, he's still hitting a solid .278/.321/.422 with eight homers, 42 RBI, 33 runs scored and a steal in 90 games played. Martin Maldonado is doing the catching and batting ninth on Thursday against Ragans. Maldonado is hitting just .186 (47-for-253) this year, but he does have 11 home runs. He'll be a low-upside DFS play while hitting ninth.

The Houston Astros are finalizing a deal to acquire catcher Christian Vazquez from the Boston Red Sox on Monday, according to sources. The Red Sox are playing in Houston on Monday night, so Vazquez will just be switching club houses. Vazquez will serve as Houston's primary backstop the rest of the way, with Martin Maldonado and Korey Lee serving as insurance. The Astros also traded for veteran first baseman/outfielder Trey Mancini on Monday. Vazquez has been one of Boston's lone bright spots in a tough season, as he was hitting .282/.327/.432 with eight home runs, 42 RBI, 33 runs scored and a stolen bases in 318 plate appearances over 84 games. He'll receive a slight fantasy boost while heading to the Astros lineup.

The Houston Astros, who are seeking a catcher at this year's trade deadline, are among several teams reporting a high price on Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras. As a result, they are focusing more on Boston Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez, according to one source. While Martin Maldonado is solid defensively for the Astros, they definitely are seeking an offensive upgrade at the position. Vazquez, 31, is having a great year at the plate and is currently slashing .282/.327/.432 with eight home runs, 42 RBI, 33 runs scored and a stolen base in 318 plate appearances and 84 games for the BoSox.

Boston Red Sox outfielder J.D. Martinez, catcher Christian Vazquez, and pitcher Nathan Eovaldi could be moved by the trade deadline. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Martinez, Vazquez, and Eovaldi are all free agents to be and among the candidates to be traded. It remains to be seen where they will be traded; with Boston at a 50-52 record, the Red Sox will likely be sellers at the deadline. Martinez and Vasquez shouldn't take much of a hit in fantasy if moved, while Eovaldi could earn chances for more wins by moving to a playoff contender. Stay tuned.

The New York Mets have scouts attending the Boston Red Sox's Friday night affair against the Milwaukee Brewers, according to Ken Rosenthal. They are mainly there to see Red Sox outfielder J.D. Martinez and catcher Christian Vazquez. The Mets have been involved in rumors circulating around Chicago Cubs relief pitcher David Robertson and catcher Willson Contreras, but according to Rosenthal, they could pivot to a trade with the Red Sox if the Cubs price is too steep. If this is what ends up happening, expect the Mets to look for another deal to address their bullpen. If the trade does end up happening, the value of Martinez and Vasquez might see a slight boost in fantasy when lineup context is taken into account, but nothing too major.

Boston Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez is not in the starting lineup for Tuesday's game against the Cincinnati Reds. Kevin Plawecki is starting at catcher over Vazquez and is hitting eighth. The 31-year-old has multiple hits in three of his last five games. Vazquez is having an excellent offensive season and is slashing .303/.346/.420 with two home runs, eight doubles, 11 runs scored and 20 runs batted in through 119 at-bats this season.