Yasmani Grandal

Grandal is getting up there in age for a catcher, and there were a few warning signs for the veteran. He struck out nearly 30% of the time last season, well above his typical rate, and his expected batting average, slugging percentage, and wOBA were some of the worst of his career. At the same time, he continued to walk at a near-elite clip, and again provided plenty of power from a position where pop is hard to find. The good news for Grandal is that both his large contract and his elite pitch framing skills should keep him in the lineup as often as possible, which will help to pad his counting stats. He's just a tad outside of the elite range at the position, but he's a locked in fantasy starter.

Yasmani Grandal hits second homer of playoffs on Wednesday

Yasmani Grandal went 1-for-3 with a home run, three RBI, and two walks in Wednesday's 5-3 Wild Card loss to the A's.

Fantasy Impact

Grandal put the White Sox on the board in the eighth inning as he took Liam Hendriks deep with Tim Anderson aboard for his second long ball of the postseason. Chicago made things interesting in the ninth inning when the catcher took a bases-loaded walk to drive in his third run and pull the Sox to within two runs. Ultimately the comeback fell short and the ChiSox will play again on Thursday for a pivotal Game 3.