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Giancarlo Stanton DH | NYY
Marlins' Giancarlo Stanton: Drives in two with two-hit effort Friday
Stanton went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI in a win over the Rockies on Friday.
A pair of hits rarely qualifies as a newsworthy effort, but it was just Stanton's second multi-hit game since May 13. He's driven in just five runs in June, but did manage to get his average back up to the Mendoza line. The slugger is batting .200/.309/.420 over 200 at-bats this season.
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Bryce Harper 1B | PHI
Nationals' Bryce Harper: Two hits in Friday's win
Harper went 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI in Friday's win over the Padres.
It's his second straight two-hit game, and after slumping through the latter part of May, Harper's now hitting .308/.393/.404 through 52 June at-bats. It's only a matter of time before his power reemerges as well, so the Nats' slugger could be poised for a productive few weeks heading into the All-Star break.
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Justin Turner DH | CHC
Dodgers' Justin Turner: Walk-off hero versus Brewers
Turner finished 3-for-5 with a pair of solo home runs and a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning in Friday's win over the Brewers.
Turner provided all of the Dodgers' offense on a lean night, extending his hitting streak to five games in the process. He has hit .500 with a pair of home runs and six RBI over that span, raising his batting average to .243, which is as high as it has been in five weeks. Further, Turner has uncorked five of his eight home runs in the last 10 games and seems to be finally getting things on track after a slow start.
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Brad Miller DH | SD
Rays' Brad Miller: Breaks up shutout with ninth-inning homer Friday
Miller went 1-for-4 with a solo homer Friday against the Giants.
Miller's seventh blast of the season provided the Rays with their only run of the game, and it came with two outs in the ninth inning of a losing effort. Hopefully, the homer will turn around a terrible month of June in which he has a .200 batting average.
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Brandon Belt DH | TOR
Giants' Brandon Belt: Launches ninth homer Friday
Belt went 2-for-3 with a double, a solo homer, two runs and a walk Friday at the Rays.
In his first game since suffering an ankle injury Tuesday, Belt scored the first run of the game and gave the Giants a lead they'd never relinquish before adding his ninth homer of the season to extend the Giants' lead in the seventh inning. He's now hit safely in 12 of 13 June contests to bring his batting average to .311.
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Byron Buxton CF | MIN
Twins' Byron Buxton: Remains starting center fielder
Buxton will remain the Twins' starting center fielder with Danny Santana taking on more of a utility role, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Although Buxton has gotten back into some bad habits of late -- he's 4-for-his-last-35 -- the Twins aren't going anywhere and they seem content to let Buxton work through some growing pains in what amounts to a lost season. He figures to remain stuck in the nine-hole for the foreseeable future.
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Brandon Belt DH | TOR
Giants' Brandon Belt: Back in lineup Friday
Belt (ankle) is in the lineup for Friday's game against the Rays.
Belt left Tuesday's game after getting hit by a pitch in the sixth inning against the Brewers and hasn't played in a game since. He will be manning first base and hitting in the third spot of the order for Friday's game against Chris Archer and the Rays. Belt has been having a phenomenal year thus far, hitting .301/.412/.514 with eight home runs and 33 RBI.
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Andrew McCutchen DH | TEX
Pirates' Andrew McCutchen: Ends four-game hitless slump with three-hit night
McCutchen went 3-for-4 with a double and a homer in a 6-4 loss to the Mets on Thursday.
He'd been 0-for-15 over the prior four games, so it's nice to see this from McCutchen, but performances of this ilk have been few and far between for him this year. His last three-hit game was nearly a full month ago (May 17) and he's still carrying an abysmal .242/.319/.418 line with a reasonable total of 10 homers, but only one steal all season.