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He is now protected from next month’s Rule 5 Draft. Arcia, 20, batted .291/.335/.531 with 13 homers, 51 RBI and an .866 OPS over 316 plate appearances this season between three different levels in the lower ranks of the Twins’ farm system. While his plate discipline needs work, he is one of the most promising bats in the organization.

Naylor singled and drew three walks in his first four plate appearances, ultimately scoring a run on a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning. He then delivered a go-ahead RBI double as part of the team’s eight-run uprising in the seventh inning then swiped third base and scored on an RBI single by Ryne Nelson (yes, the relief pitcher). The 27-year-old slugger is off to a nice start with his new club, hitting .400 (6-for-15) with three runs scored, three RBI and a stolen base.

The Diamondbacks had just cut their deficit to two runs on a two-run double by Geraldo Perdomo when Gurriel strolled to the dish against Eli Morgan. He jumped on a first-pitch fastball, pulverizing a 416-foot (107.5 mph EV) two-run shot that tied the game at 6-6. The 31-year-old outfielder also singled in the ballgame, finishing the afternoon 2-for-5. He’s now hitting .211 (4-for-19) with one long ball and three RBI on the season.

The left-hander struck out five opposing hitters on the afternoon while issuing three walks. All of the damage that was done against him came via the long ball, with Dansby Swanson crushing a solo shot in the second inning and Seiya Suzuki adding the dagger with a two-run blast in the sixth. Rodriguez generated eight swings and misses on 85 pitches on the day — six of them on his changeup — while recording a CSW of 26 percent. He’ll try once again to get in the win column when he does battle against the Nationals in Washington on Saturday.

The Cubs early 3-0 lead had been whittled down to just one run at 3-2 when Tucker launched a first-pitch curveball from Joe Mantiply for a 366-foot (97.2 mph EV) three-run shot in the eighth inning. Tucker also worked a walk in the ballgame, finishing the afternoon 1-for-4. He’s off to a quick start with his new club, hitting .250 (6-for-24) with a pair of homers, seven RBI and a stolen base.

Suzuki tagged Diamondbacks’ southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez for his 420-foot (106.0 mph EV) two-run blast in the sixth inning — extending the Cubs’ lead to 3-0. He also reached on a fielder’s choice and rode home on Kyle Tucker’s three-run shot in the eighth inning. With the two-hit attack, he’s now hitting .160 (4-for-25) with one homer and two RBI on the young season.

The 34-year-old hurler allowed four hits in the game, all of them singles, and also issued three free passes. Despite the traffic on the basepaths, Boyd stayed in control the entire time and the Diamondbacks never had a runner reach third base against him. He got 11 whiffs on 92 pitches in the game — three or more on each of his fastball, changeup and slider — while posting a CSW of 27 percent. He exited with a 3-0 lead and in line for a victory, but the Cubs’ bullpen wouldn’t oblige. The schedule doesn’t get any easier for him, as he’ll take on two more elite offenses his next two times out — against the Padres at home on Saturday and then against the Dodgers in Los Angeles the following weekend. If he makes it through that gauntlet unscathed, fantasy managers may really have something special on their hands.

The Cardinals’ plan all winter was to trade Nolan Arenado and install Gorman at third, but with Arenado invoking his no-trade clause, Gorman is back fighting for time at second base and DH. Things will get complicated for the Cardinals in a good way if Gorman performs well in his limited role. He didn’t, however, provide much reason for optimism while hitting .189/.232/.321 this spring.

Pallante’s velocity was down all spring, but one never would have known that today; his 95.2 mph average on his fastball was up from last year’s mark of 94.5. He was mostly at 92-93 mph in Grapefruit League action, and he put his rotation spot in jeopardy with his struggles then. Now that he seems to be full strength, he should be a fine middle-of-the-rotation arm for the Cardinals, though probably not one with mixed-league value.

The oddity in this game was that only four pitchers participated. Matz finished the game for the Cardinals after Andre Pallante departed, and Randy Dobnak did the same for the Twins, throwing 5 1/3 innings after Bailey Ober was shelled. Matz might be good for one or two more three-inning saves while biding his time and hoping that a rotation spot opens up.

A glass-half-full person would point out that this is the same way Ober opened up what turned out to be an excellent 2024 season; he gave up eight runs in 1 1/3 innings versus the Royals on March 31. Still, this doesn’t seem to be that Ober. He averaged 90.3 mph today with his fastball. That’s right where he was all spring, too, and it’s down about 1.5 mph from last year. He’s not necessarily totally doomed as a fantasy starter if he doesn’t get that back, but he surely won’t be helping in ERA as is.