Gleyber Torres went 3-for-4 with his first homer of the season and a pair of RBIs on Sunday to propel the Yankees past the Nationals, 3-2. After going 0-for-6 over the season's first two games against Washington's talented pitching staff, Torres broke out with his first big offensive performance of 2020 on Sunday. The 23-year-old already has 63 home runs and 169 RBIs through his first 270 career games, putting him on the path to Cooperstown if he stays healthy. Torres projects to be a mainstay in fantasy lineups for years to come, especially while he's batting third in the heart of a loaded Yankees lineup sandwiched between Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.
Carlos Carrasco earned his first win of 2020 on Sunday, racking up 10 strikeouts over six innings of two-run ball vs. the Royals at home. Carrasco, who benefitted from Cleveland's generous run support in the 9-2 victory, limited Kansas City to five hits and one walk while throwing 62 of his 87 pitches for strikes. With Carrasco coming off a trying 2019 in which he was diagnosed with leukemia, Sunday's impressive outing was certainly a good start to the 33-year-old's comeback season. He'll look to have another strong performance next weekend in Minnesota against the powerful Twins, where he's 4-4 with a 4.29 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP in 13 career appearances (10 starts).
Jose Ramirez paced Cleveland's 9-2 win over Kansas City on Sunday, going 3-for-5 with a pair of homers, four runs and four RBIs. After notching hits in each of his first two games of the year, Ramirez unloaded for his first long balls of the season in what was also his first multi-hit performance of the year. While his 2019 season was marred by a poor first half, Ramirez has been on fire since last year's Fourth of July. Over his last 48 games, he's bashed 20 homers and has driven in 56 runs while batting .333. Squarely in his prime at 27, Ramirez has the potential to post impressive power numbers in a short amount of time, making him a possible MVP candidate in this shortened campaign.
Nelson Cruz erupted for a monster performance against the White Sox on Sunday, cracking a pair of homers and a pair of doubles while driving in seven of Minnesota's 14 runs. Cruz, who turned 40 earlier this month, proved he's still a force at the plate with a trio of home runs and 10 RBIs over his first three games. Coming off arguably his best offensive season last year, when he posted a career-best 1.031 OPS and homered once every 11.1 at-bats, Cruz is still an elite fantasy option at DH, much like David Ortiz was a few seasons ago. Batting cleanup in Minnesota's stacked lineup should give him plenty of opportunities to keep driving in runs, too.
Mike Trout slammed his first homer of the season on Sunday, going 2-for-3 while driving in all four of the Angels' runs against the A's. After going a quiet 1-for-7 in his first two games of the year, Trout reminded everyone why he's considered one of the best players of all time. Trout, who won his third MVP last year, is still at the top of his game with his 29th birthday just around the corner. If he wins another MVP this year, he'll become the only player besides Barry Bonds with four MVP awards, and the only player to win that many before he turns 30. Stay tuned.
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