Daichi Suzuki hasn't missed a game for the Chiba Lotte Marines in over three seasons. In 2015, he missed one. Both years before that, he was on the field for every contest.
Suzuki played all his games in the field at third base last season. This year he has a new rival for playing time at third in Brandon Laird, who the Marines signed over the offseason. Laird, a former Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters slugger, led the Pacific League with 39 home runs in 2016 and has hit at least 26 every year since 2015.
While Suzuki is happy to have a player like Laird on board, he's also a competitor.
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