The Cleveland Indians have promoted Francisco Mejia to the big league club now that Roberto Perez has been sidelined with a bruised right hand.
Since the Indians have opted not to place Perez on the disabled list, relief pitcher Evan Marshall has been optioned to Triple-A Columbus to make room for Mejia.
Perez was struck on the right hand by a pitch on Sunday against the Tigers. He remained in the game as a baserunner before being replaced by Yan Gomes the next half inning. It’s unclear how long he will be out of commission.
Mejia has struggled so far this season in the minor leagues. In 50 games with Triple-A Columbus, the Tribe’s top prospect is slashing .214/.271/.333. Yesterday’s 0-for-2 performance against the Buffalo Bison halted a ten-game hitting streak that helped his batting average climb over the Mendoza line. He would seem to be trending in the right direction, but I’m not sure an unexpected trip back up to the big leagues is going to help that momentum.
It will be interesting to see how much manager Terry Francona uses Mejia behind the dish. Beyond spring training and limited action late last season once the roster expanded, I don’t know that Mejia has much of a rapport with this pitching staff. Trevor Bauer, in particular, will be without his personal catcher for an extended period, as Perez has caught all but one of his 13 starts this season.