Kansas City Royals: Five Players to Watch Vs Oakland Athletics

Apr 8, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Kansas City Royals designated hitter Salvador Perez (13) is congratulated by third base coach Mike Jirschele (23) after hitting a home run during the eighth inning against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /

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Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (13) – Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports /

SALVADOR PEREZ

Has anyone been hotter than Salvador Perez so far into the season? The Gold Glove catcher has hit a home run in four straight games, bringing his season total to four.

Perez is hot at the plate right now and that’s a beautiful thing. His average currently sits at .292 (so, lower than Moose, for what it’s worth) and he’s shown that he can be that power hitting catcher we all knew he could be.

The Royals gave Perez the day off at the catcher spot on Saturday, but he was slotted in as the designated hitter that day. Hopefully Ned Yost decides to do this more often, as Perez is given less days off than most MLB catchers. Drew Butera is a great backup and is more than capable of starting games frequently.

With this series against Oakland being Monday-Thursday with an off day planned for Tuesday, don’t expect Salvy to be the DH at all. He’ll likely be catching all three games, but even if he isn’t, he’ll be in the lineup somehow. It’d be stupid to keep Perez’s red hot bat out of the lineup.

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