McCann gets another day off to rest sore knee

ATLANTA -- Catcher Brian McCann received a second straight day off on Sunday afternoon to rest his sore right knee, which flared up just before Friday night's series opener against the Marlins. McCann made a pinch-hit appearance in the eighth inning on Saturday, after manager Fredi Gonzalez left him out of the starting lineup as a precaution.

"Mac came in [on Friday] after the game, he came in and his knee was a little sore, and I didn't want to mess with it, to make something small bigger. ... So we gave him a day today," Gonzalez said before Saturday's game. "When he came out of the bullpen [after] warming up [Brandon] Beachy, he kind of felt it, and so we didn't want to mess with it."

McCann's solo home run on Friday gave the catcher 17 home runs in just 71 games since returning from offseason shoulder surgery. He struck out on three pitches on Saturday, after swinging at a pair of 94-mph fastballs from Miami reliever Mike Dunn.

Because McCann still did not feel comfortable pushing his knee over a full game behind the plate on Sunday, Evan Gattis started a second consecutive game at catcher for the first time since McCann's return in early May.