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Ezequiel Duran 3B | TEX
Rangers' Ezequiel Duran: Swats seventh homer
Duran went 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBI in Saturday's 11-5 win over the Rockies.
After contributing an RBI single to the Rangers' four-run first inning, Duran slugged a no-doubter to left field in the fifth off Fernando Abad for his seventh homer of the year. The 23-year-old has been inserted as the DH in two straight games with Corey Seager back at shortstop, and it looks like Bruce Bochy will try to keep Duran's bat in the lineup on an everyday basis -- a fairly easy decision for the manager considering Duran's .328/.366/.627 slash line in May.
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Corey Seager SS | TEX
Rangers' Corey Seager: Socks second homer
Seager went 3-for-4 with a double, a two-run home run and a second run scored in Saturday's 11-5 win over the Rockies.
The game was well in hand when the shortstop drove a Fernando Abad sinker to straightaway center field for his second homer of the year. Seager has hit the ground running since coming off the injured list, going 4-for-8 in three games with two doubles, a homer, three runs and five RBI.
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Paul DeJong SS | DET
Cardinals' Paul DeJong: Adds steal in win
DeJong went 0-for-2 with a stolen base, a hit-by-pitch and a run scored in Saturday's 6-5 win over the Dodgers.
DeJong's bat has cooled off a bit, as he's gone just 4-for-31 over his last nine games, though it helps that three of those hits were home runs. He's also logged two steals in that span. The shortstop is slashing .267/.345/.547 with six homers, two steals, 10 RBI, 14 runs scored and three doubles through 22 contests this season. It's been enough to earn him fairly steady playing time, though he's frequently hit in the bottom third of the order.
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Tommy Edman 2B | LAD
Cardinals' Tommy Edman: Back as expected
Edman (abdomen) will bat ninth and play right field Saturday against the Dodgers, Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Edman left Thursday's series opener following an outfield collision with Lars Nootbaar and didn't start Friday's contest, but he appeared off the bench. Expectations were that he'd be able to return to the lineup Saturday, and that's indeed the case.
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Miguel Rojas 2B | LAD
Dodgers' Miguel Rojas: Out of lineup
Rojas will sit Saturday against St. Louis, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.
Rojas owns a .545 OPS in 16 games since returning from a strained hamstring, though that at least beats his .356 OPS from his 11 games prior to the injury. He'll hit the bench Saturday with Chris Taylor taking over at shortstop.
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Brandon Crawford SS | STL
Giants' Brandon Crawford: Out of lineup
Crawford will sit Saturday against the Marlins, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The Giants faced five straight righties after Crawford returned from a hamstring strain, and the veteran started against four of them. He'll hit the bench here against lefty Braxton Garrett, with Casey Schmitt starting at shortstop.
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J.P. Crawford SS | SEA
Mariners' J.P. Crawford: Multi-hit effort in loss
Crawford went 2-for-4 with a double in a loss to Atlanta on Friday.
The veteran shortstop stuck in the leadoff spot while reaching safely for the 15th straight start. Crawford's .244 average and .341 slugging percentage leave plenty to be desired, but his .370 on-base percentage, partly fueled by a 16.0 percent walk rate, gives him solid top-of-the-order credentials as manager Scott Servais looks to get Julio Rodriguez's offense ignited a bit further down the lineup.
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Jorge Mateo SS | TB
Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Adds steal
Mateo went 1-for-4 with a stolen base and a run scored in Friday's 6-2 win over the Blue Jays.
Mateo missed a game with leg soreness earlier in the week, but it can't be bothering him too much if he can still be a threat on the basepaths. He's had limited opportunities to run lately with a paltry .148 on-base percentage across 15 contests in May. His hot start to the season has propped up his slash line at a respectable .252/.296/.447 through 38 games, but it's concerning to see the speedster slip back to his old ways at the plate. He's added 14 steals, six home runs, 22 RBI and 26 runs scored this season.
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Aledmys Diaz 1B | HOU
Athletics' Aledmys Diaz: Day off Saturday
Diaz will sit Saturday versus the Astros.
Diaz will head to the bench after he went 2-for-4 with a strikeout in Friday's 5-1 loss. Nick Allen will take over at shortstop and bat ninth against Houston.
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Trea Turner SS | PHI
Phillies' Trea Turner: Sits for first time
Turner will be on the bench Saturday against the Cubs.
The start to Turner's first season in Philadelphia hasn't gone as he or the team would have hoped, but Saturday's off day (the first of the season for Turner) looks like nothing more than a routine one. After slashing .302/.355/.487 across his first eight seasons, he's hitting just .257/.302/.390 this year, and his five steals are a disappointing total given the explosion of stolen bases across the league following the offseason rule changes. He's also developed an uncharacteristic strikeout problem, with 18 strikeouts in his last 12 games raising his season strikeout rate to 26.6 percent. The Phillies will hope the day off allows him to reset and get back to his old self.