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The Royals announced that All-Star catcher Salvador Perez will begin the year on the disabled list and will miss 4-6 weeks with a grade 2 tear of his medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his knee. Salvy injured his leg slipping last night while carrying his luggage. He is not expected to need surgery.
Perez on the injury: Suitcase in hand and stepped and lost balance and foot slid when he tried to stabilize and then he felt a pop.
— Cody Tapp (@codybtapp) March 28, 2018
Ned Yost on Perez: “He’s distraught.”
— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) March 28, 2018
Drew Butera will start at catcher on Opening Day. Butera hit .227/.284/.319 in 177 plate appearances last year. Perez is a five-time All-Star who has caught more innings over the last five seasons than any other catcher in baseball. Perez missed some time last year when he went on the disabled list with a strained intercostal, and he appeared in fewer games than in any season since 2012.