Royals' MJ Melendez: Getting work at 3B

Melendez got some work in at third base Tuesday and manager Mike Matheny has also praised his catching ability in recent days, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.

The 23-year-old is 2-for-6 with two walks and one strikeout so far in big-league camp. Obviously Salvador Perez will get the bulk of the starts behind the dish for the Royals, but Melendez is a good enough hitting prospect that the team will look for ways to get his bat in the lineup this year. So far, third base and designated hitter seem like the most likely avenues along with catching when Perez is at DH or on the bench. Melendez seems likely to open the year at Triple-A, but he may not be there for long.