Cedric Mullins homers again in win over Royals

Mullins has three homers in four games and six over the last month after hitting three through the end of May. Between his struggles hitting for average and his platoon status, he remains a tough play in mixed leagues. However, nine homers and 13 steals at the midpoint is pretty good.

Yandy Díaz is leading off for a seventh straight game. It’s the first time in six days that the Rays have faced a righty. Simpson was mostly leading off against righties before getting hurt last weekend and missing a few games. In three games versus lefties since, he hit third Tuesday, didn’t start Wednesday and batted seventh on Friday. As for Mullins, it’s his first time hitting in the top third of the order since May 2 and just the fourth time he’s done so this season. Mullins, who is batting in between Jonathan Aranda and Junior Caminero tonight, is hitting .200/.355/.560 with three homers in nine games this month.

Mullins’ fourth homer came on only his third barrel of the year. He’s hitting .186/.268/.288 with just a .209 BABIP. Incredibly, though, Statcast doesn’t think he’s been at all the victim of bad luck. Having one of the league’s lowest hard-hit rates and highest flyball rates is just a really bad combination.

Mullins put together his strongest all-around performance of an otherwise lackluster Rays debut, notching a season-high four hits, including his third round-tripper of the season. The 31-year-old center fielder also picked up his ninth stolen base of the season in this one. He’s been a complete non-factor fantasy-wise this year, but he’s putting up some impressive numbers recently, hitting .306 (11-for-36) with one homer and three steals in 11 games since the start of May.

Mullins is off to an ice-cold start to his Rays debut, hitting .147/.198/.280 with two homers and three steals through 20 games. It’s worth noting that Tampa Bay has top prospect Jacob Melton waiting in the wings down at Triple-A Durham, which means Mullins is going to have to start producing sooner or later.

Mullins drove in a run with a base hit in the fifth inning to give the Rays the lead. With the game extended into the 13th, he came through with a two-run homer to once again put the Rays ahead with what would end up being the game-winning runs. It was the 31-year-old outfielder’s best day at the plate so far. His home run gives him two on the year with eight RBI while slashing .149/.205/.284 across 75 plate appearances.

Both of Mullins’ hits were singles, and these were his first two steals of the season. He’s been hitting sixth for the Rays against right-handed pitchers, so there should be some chances for RBIs this season, but he’s also slashing just .133/.156/.167 so far this season with two runs scored. The Rays paid him a lot of money, for them, this season, so he’s not likely to lose his job, but he needs to produce more consistently before he can be on fantasy radars.

The Rays just don’t have anyone to bat behind Junior Caminero in the cleanup spot as long as they want Yandy Díaz and Jonathan Aranda hitting first and second. Mullins is apparently their top choice against righties, but he’s 0-for-8 so far. Up with two on and one out in the ninth today after a Caminero walk, he popped out harmlessly to third base. He probably should be batting in the bottom-third of a major league lineup at this point, but that can be said about two-thirds of Tampa Bay’s current lineup.

The Rays’ lineup would probably work best if one of their lefties from the group of Chandler Simpson, Gavin Lux, Cedric Mullins or Jake Fraley stepped up and took over the leadoff spot, but for now, it looks like they’ll go with Yandy Diaz leading off and Aranda right behind him. Still unclear is whether Junior Caminero will hit third, which he did Tuesday, or if he’ll occupy the cleanup spot, which is where he’s been in most of his starts. They Rays had Lux batting third in between Aranda and Caminero on Friday. Ryan Vilade was there today, but he’s only expected to play against lefties. Fraley and Mullins have hit fifth and sixth, respectively, behind Caminero the last two days.

Williams and Melton are viewed as long-term building blocks up the middle for Tampa Bay. The pair of top prospects will open the season back in the upper minors with veterans Taylor Walls and Cedric Mullins starting at shortstop and center field, respectively. Williams is a phenomenal defender but his power/speed combo is muted somewhat by persistent contact issues that have followed him throughout his ascent. Melton came over from the Astros as part of the Brandon Lowe three-team deal in the offseason and shouldn’t have to wait too long for an everyday opportunity with the Rays.