KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals will likely place All-Star catcher Salvador Perez on the disabled list before a doubleheader Sunday against the Seattle Mariners.
The Royals and Mariners were rained out Saturday night and rescheduled for a traditional doubleheader Sunday, starting at 111:15 a.m. (PDT) and with about 30 minutes between games.
The Mariners did put Felix Hernandez on the 10-day disabled list Saturday, retroactive to Wednesday, with biceps tendinitis. Left-hander Marco Gonzalez was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma to take his rotation turn.
This is Hernandez’s second trip to the disabled this season. He was out April 26 to June 23 with shoulder bursitis. He is 3-2 with a 4.02 ERA in eight starts since coming off the disabled list. In his previous start Monday at Texas, he allowed four runs on six hits and three walks in 5 1/3 innings in a no-decision.
Gonzales was acquired in a July 21 trade with the St. Louis Cardinals for outfielder on Tyler O’Neill. He went 2-0 with a 4.50 ERA in two starts with Tacoma.
The Cardinals drafted Gonzalez in the first round in 2013 out of Gonzaga. He missed last season after having Tommy John surgery.
As for the Royals, an MRI revealed Perez has a right intercostal strain after leaving the game Friday after six innings.
“It’s going to have to be a pretty miraculous recovery,” Royals manager Ned Yost said to prevent Perez going on the disabled list.
It they had played Saturday, Yost said Perez was “too sore” to play. The Royals had rookie catcher Cameron Gallagher in the clubhouse on standby, ready to activate him.
Gonzalez will start for the Mariners in the first game Sunday, while the Royals will counter with left-hander Danny Duffy. The Mariners will start right-hander Erasmo Ramirez in the second game. The Royals plan on bringing up rookie right-hander Jakob Junis as the 26th man and starting him in the second game.
Junis is 3-2 with a 5.50 ERA in nine games, six starts, with Kansas City. He is 3-5 with a 2.92 ERA in a dozen starts with Triple-A Omaha this season.
The rainout was the Mariners’ first since April 30, 2014. They had not been rained out in Kansas City since Aug. 19, 2004.
