Mike Zunino was expected back soon after the All-Star Break. While it was all but guaranteed he’d return by Tuesday to catch James Paxton, Zunino’s ankle appears properly healed and he should be in the lineup to catch Marco Gonzales this afternoon.
Depending on your feelings for the Free-Swingers and Mash M’s catcher, this is either a huge relief or fails to move the needle. Despite Freitas mashing his first career MLB home run against the Angels a week and a half ago, Chris Herrmann’s more impressive bat and superior positional versatility won out for retaining the backup catcher role.