Prior to the start of the season, Yainer Diaz was expected to get a bump in playing time with Christian Vazquez leaving for Minnesota and Martin Maldonado in the last year of his deal at 36 years old.

But despite Maldonado's challenges at the plate (.162/.250/.235), and decline in defensive skills, Diaz has not been playing as much as expected. And he's not getting enough at-bats to make any reasonable conclusions about how he's progressing in MLB.

When manager Dusty Baker was asked about the distribution of playing time, he said it's been difficult to get enough opportunities for Diaz AND catcher César Salazar. And we shouldn't expect Maldonado's role to change until the schedule shifts.

Be sure to check out the video above as we lay out why these comments are so head-scratching.

If you enjoy the videos, subscribe on YouTube for our latest content.