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Yasmani Grandal C | PIT
Brewers' Yasmani Grandal: Bat comes alive in win
Grandal went 3-for-4 in Monday's 4-3 win over the Reds.
After an 0-for-11 start to his Brewers tenure, Grandal found his stroke in Cincinnati. The veteran catcher is stuck hitting seventh most nights in a stacked Milwaukee lineup, but he should still be plenty productive in 2019 after slugging at least 22 homers in each of the last three seasons.
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Gary Sanchez C | MIL
Yankees' Gary Sanchez: Goes yard again
Sanchez went 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run in Monday's 3-1 win over the Tigers.
That's now two homers in two days for the 26-year-old, as good a sign as any that the shoulder issue he's been dealing with since 2017 is no longer a problem. With Giancarlo Stanton (bicep) and Miguel Andujar (shoulder) both now sidelined with their own injuries, Sanchez's power will become even more important for the Yankees' offense.
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Gary Sanchez C | MIL
Yankees' Gary Sanchez: Cranks first homer
Sanchez went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in the Yankees' 7-5 defeat against the Orioles on Sunday.
Sanchez is just 3-for-13 to start the season after a slow spring training, but he cranked his first long ball of the year with a seventh-inning solo shot off John Means. The young backstop will look to parlay that into some momentum going forward as he looks to rebound from last year's injury-riddled campaign that saw him struggle to the tune of a .186/.291/.406 slash line over 323 at-bats.
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Luis Campusano C | SD
Padres' Luis Campusano: Beginning season in California League
Campusano (concussion) will begin the 2019 season at High-A Lake Elsinore, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Campusano isn't included on Lake Elsinore's 7-day injured list, making it safe to conclude that he's moved past the concussion that sidelined him for the final month of the 2018 campaign. The backstop will make the jump to the California League after slashing .288/.345/.365 over 284 plate appearances with Low-A Fort Wayne a season ago.
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Omar Narvaez C | HOU
Mariners' Omar Narvaez: Knocks three-run homer
Narvaez went 2-for-5 with a home run, three RBI and a pair of runs scored in the 10-8 win over Boston on Sunday.
Narvaez took Rick Porcello deep in what ended up being a seven-run third inning. The first-year Mariner collected two hits and a home run in each of the last two games. He should get most of the starts as long as his bat continues to make noise.
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Tom Murphy C | SF
Mariners' Tom Murphy: On base thrice in debut
Murphy drew the start behind the dish in Saturday's win over the Red Sox and went 1-for-2 with two walks.
Murphy arrived via trade from the Giants on Friday, and he was already in the starting lineup with southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez on the mound for the Red Sox. Murphy is expected to platoon with Omar Narvaez behind the dish moving forward, logging starts against any left-handers in addition to potentially seeing an occasional opportunity versus right-handed pitching.
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Roberto Perez C | BOS
Indians' Roberto Perez: Not starting Sunday
Perez is on the bench for Sunday's game against the Twins.
Perez started the team's first two games but will sit in favor of Kevin Plawecki in the third. That pattern suggests that Perez will have a fairly typical workload for a starting catcher this season, though it may take more time for the full picture to emerge.
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Michael Perez C | BAL
Rays' Michael Perez: Productive out of bottom of order
Perez went 2-for-3 with an RBI double and a run in a win over the Astros on Saturday.
Perez made good use of his first start of the season, flashing the same hot bat he did during Grapefruit League play. While Mike Zunino will see the bulk of playing time behind the dish this season, Perez still projects for a fair share of opportunities, considering Zunino hasn't played more than 124 games in any of his six major-league seasons to date.
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Willson Contreras 1B | BOS
Cubs' Willson Contreras: Takes seat Sunday
Contreras is not in the lineup Sunday against the Rangers.
Contreras will get the day off Sunday, a customary move given the earlier start time. Victor Caratini drawing the start behind the dish in his place. Contreras has swung a hot bat to start the season, reaching base in five of his first 10 plate appearances.
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Danny Jansen C | TEX
Blue Jays' Danny Jansen: Leading off Sunday
Jansen is leading off as the designated hitter in Sunday's game against the Tigers.
Jansen has been used all over the lineup early on this season, batting eighth and fifth prior to Sunday's action. Though he'll get a break behind the dish, Jansen will look to get his bat going after reaching base just once in his first seven at-bats.