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A word about Manny Pina

Manny Pina is here to help
In a horrible year for fantasy catchers, Manny Pina is here to help (AP)

Manny Pina’s professional career has covered 13 years. It hasn’t amounted to anything special, other than the frequent flier miles.

He’s been everywhere, man. Stops in the Texas, Kansas City, Detroit, and Seattle organizations. He’s been Brewers property for two years.

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And now, at age 30, Pina actually has fantasy relevance. Let’s raise a glass and celebrate the accomplishment.

Pina’s .295 average and .455 slugging percentage are a case of a hacker making good. Although he showed a solid walk rate for most of his minor-league resume, he’s only walking 4.7 percent of the time this year. But good things come when Pina makes contact — line drives 25.3 percent of the time. And contact is basically his game — Pina’s contact rate is fourth among catchers with at least 200 at-bats.

Milwaukee was fine using Pina in a time-share with recently-acquired Stephen Vogt, but that’s on hold for now. Vogt has an MCL sprain — those pesky home-plate collisions — and might miss a month. This puts Pina in charge of the Milwaukee’s catcher spot, and he’ll enjoy a plus lineup. The Brewers rank sixth in runs, fifth in slugging and fifth in OPS.

If you need catcher help — and it’s been a fantasy wasteland this year — Pina is available in 93 percent of Yahoo leagues.