Fermin is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Yankees.
Fermin will get a breather for the series opener after he caught both of the Royals' final two games of the weekend series with the Twins. Salvador Perez will pick up a start behind the dish Monday while Yuli Gurriel draws a start at first base.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Sitting out Monday
Rotowire
Fermin is absent from the lineup for Monday's contest versus the Guardians.
Fermin was in the lineup for each of the last three games after Vinnie Pasquantino (thumb) landed on the injured list, but he will begin Monday's contest on the bench. Salvador Perez will start behind the plate for the series opener against the Guardians.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Taking seat Friday
Rotowire
Fermin is out of the lineup for Friday's game against Philadelphia.
After making seven consecutive starts, Fermin has been absent from the starting nine in back-to-back games. The 29-year-old will yield to Adam Frazier at DH on Friday. Fermin is slashing .301/.351/.421 across 283 plate appearances this season.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Not in Monday's lineup
Rotowire
Fermin is absent from the lineup for Monday's game in Minnesota.
The Royals will go with Salvador Perez at catcher and Michael Massey at designated hitter for their series opener against the Twins. Fermin has gone just 3-for-20 at the plate across his last five games.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Sitting Friday
Rotowire
Fermin is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Cardinals.
The 29-year-old will yield to Paul DeJong at DH on Friday. In his last seven games, Fermin is 10-for-29 (.345) with a homer, six RBI and a run scored.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Getting rest Tuesday
Rotowire
Fermin is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Red Sox.
After starting six straight games -- four at DH, two at catcher -- Fermin will have the night off Tuesday. The 29-year-old is slashing .304/.352/.429 with a 18.4 percent strikeout rate in 245 plate appearances.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Homers in loss
Rotowire
Fermin went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 7-3 loss to the Cubs.
Fermin has gone 6-for-19 with two extra-base hits over his last six games. The catcher's playing time has remained limited despite his recent good form at the plate. For the season, he's up to five homers, 24 RBI, 29 runs scored, 10 doubles and a .294/.344/.423 slash line over 65 contests. Fermin is good for two or three games per week between catcher and designated hitter.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Heading to bench Friday
Rotowire
Fermin is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Red Sox.
Fermin started the previous six games, splitting his time between catcher and DH, but he'll receive a day off after he went 7-for-20 with two walks, two RBI and four runs during that span. Adam Frazier will serve as Kansas City's designated hitter Friday.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Racks up three hits
Rotowire
Fermin went 3-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Friday's 4-2 loss to the Rockies.
Fermin has three multi-hit efforts over his last eight games, but that's a span that dates back to June 20. The backup catcher is making the most of his opportunities this year, slashing .303/.355/.439 with four home runs, 19 RBI, 24 runs scored and nine doubles over 169 plate appearances. Fermin's reliability has allowed Salvador Perez to rest or serve as the designated hitter regularly. Fermin's playing time had declined while Michael Massey was limited to designated-hitter duties, but Massey has been cleared to play the field and should see more time at second base in the second half.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Drives in two in Wednesday's win
Rotowire
Fermin went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI in Wednesday's 5-1 win over the Marlins.
The Royals' offense was stuck in neutral until the eighth inning, but Fermin capped a five-run outburst with a two-run single. The 29-year-old had been on the bench the prior three games with Michael Massey serving as the DH in his return from a lower-back strain, which kept Salvador Perez behind the plate. But playing time should open up for Fermin again once Massey is ready to resume defensive duties at second base. On the season, Fermin is slashing .294/.340/.434 with four homers, 18 RBI and 21 runs in 48 contests.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Taking seat Monday
Rotowire
Fermin is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Marlins.
Fermin is on the bench for the second day in a row, but his playing time could be on the upswing nonetheless while he's produced a .271/.314/.500 slash line through the first three and a half weeks of June. In addition to filling in at catcher on days that top backstop Salvador Perez gets days off behind the dish, Fermin will factor into the equation at designated hitter, where he had made two of his last three starts.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Playing time picking up
Rotowire
Fermin will start at catcher and bat sixth in Thursday's game against the Yankees.
Fermin remains the Royals' No. 2 catcher, but he's been playing more than the typical backup of late due to Kansas City's willingness to deploy top backstop Salvador Perez at first base or designated hitter on his non-catching days. With Perez serving as the Royals' DH for Thursday's day game, Fermin will pick up his fourth start in five games. Fermin is hitting .298 with two home runs, 17 runs and 13 RBI over 122 plate appearances on the season, and his recent surge in playing time could be enough to make him a viable option in AL-only leagues or mixed leagues that start two catchers.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Working behind plate Wednesday
Rotowire
Fermin will start at catcher and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Tigers.
He'll be rewarded with his third start in four games after going 4-for-7 with a walk, an RBI and two runs between his previous two turns behind the plate. The Royals will likely continue to make room for Fermin in the lineup when the team opposes left-handed pitching, but his opportunities against right-handers will likely remain more limited while top backstop Salvador Perez is healthy.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Workload picking up
Rotowire
Fermin will start at catcher and bat seventh in Sunday's game against the Rangers.
Fermin will be behind the dish for the fifth time in seven games while Salvador Perez gets a day off from catching and serves as the Royals' designated hitter. Nelson Velazquez has served as the Royals' primary DH all season, but he's been occupying more of a part-time role of late as manager Matt Quartaro has look to make room in the lineup for Fermin, who has gone 5-for-18 with a solo home run and three walks over his last six games.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Scores run in win
Rotowire
Fermin went 2-for-3 with one double and one run in Sunday's win against the White Sox.
Fermin has totaled 15 at-bats with two runs and three hits over five games played as the main backup to starting catcher Salvador Perez. The 28-year-old hasn't built upon his solid .782 OPS from the 2023 campaign, as Fermin has just a .467 OPS through the small sample this year.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Projected as backup catcher
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Fermin is projected to be the Royals' backup catcher to begin 2024, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
The Royals recently signed Austin Nola, but he's viewed as an experienced depth option. Fermin has gone 1-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout over two Cactus League games. With Salvador Perez in the latter half of his career, it wouldn't be surprising to see Fermin shoulder more of the workload behind the dish, which could see Perez take more games at first base or designated hitter.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Season over after finger surgery
Rotowire
Fermin underwent season-ending surgery Tuesday to repair a fractured left middle finger, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
Fermin suffered the injury last Friday on a catcher's interference call. He is certainly done for the season, but the hope is that he will be fully healthy by the time spring training rolls around. It's an unfortunate ending to what has been a nice season for Fermin, who batted .281/.321/.461 with nine home runs over 235 plate appearances in 2023. The 28-year-old has positioned himself to open 2024 as Salvador Perez's backup again, or perhaps even take over as starter if the Royals decide to trade Perez over the winter.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Hits bench Tuesday
Rotowire
Fermin is not in the lineup Tuesday versus the Athletics.
Fermin will sit for the second time in the past three games. Prior to that, he had made four consecutive starts, going 3-for-10. With Nick Pratto still on the injured list, Salvador Perez will move back to catcher Tuesday and Matt Duffy will start at first base.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Receives Sunday off
Rotowire
Fermin is out of the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Cubs.
Fermin worked behind the plate the previous three games and will receive a day off after going 3-for-10 with a double, a walk and two RBI. Salvador Perez will move back to catcher while Matt Beaty starts at first base.
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Royals' Freddy Fermin: Running hot at plate
Rotowire
Fermin went 2-for-4 with a double in Sunday's 8-4 loss to the Phillies.
Fermin closed out the weekend with a fourth consecutive two-hit game, and he's now slashing a blistering .388/.404/.714 with four home runs, eight RBI and 11 runs in 13 games since the All-Star break. An injury to Nick Pratto (groin) along with his own hot bat has allowed Fermin to take hold of a regular spot in the lineup alongside veteran catcher Salvador Perez, who has been seeing more time at first base and designated hitter of late. Perez is out of the lineup Monday in Boston due to what appears to be a minor hand injury, so Matt Beaty will fill in at first base while Fermin bats sixth and settles in behind the plate for what will be his fifth consecutive start.
