The Guardians Can't Ignore What's Happening In The Minors
The offense for the Cleveland Guardians has been bad. We've all watched it over the last few weeks. They've struggled to score any sort of runs let alone hit home runs. For most teams, a start like this would mean a number of trades to turn the season around.
But luckily for the Guardians, it could be much easier to find some bats that come jump-start this team.
Cleveland's Triple-A affiliate, Columbus Clippers, is full of players that are eagerly waiting to get their shot at the Big League level and are proving that they no longer belong in the Minors. Two of them especially stand out.
Brayan Rocchio
Bryan Rocchio was technically called up by the Guardians earlier in April, but he never made it into a game so we still don't know what he is capable of in the Big Leagues. However, we do know what he's doing in the Minors and it sure is impressive.
Rocchio is an absolute hitting machine. He's played in 26 games this season with Columbus and has 37 hits. That's well over a hit per game bringing his batting average to .349. Throw 10 doubles and 15 RBI into the mix and we could be looking at a great piece in the middle of the lineup.
The 22-year-old will one day be a key piece to this Guardians team and if this sort of production keeps up it should be sooner than later.
Tyler Freeman
Another player that continues to impress is Tyler Freeman. Freeman made his debut with the club last season appearing in 24 games for the Guardians. Over that stretch, he hit .247 with a .600 OPS. Not too bad for a rookie.
He was in a pretty open battle with Gabriel Arias for the team's utility position during Spring Training. However, Freeman struggled in March while Arias shined and Tyler was optioned to Triple-A to start the season.
After watching Freeman play there the first month of the season, it's pretty clear he's playing below his ability level. The middle infielder is slashing .333/.471/.494 with an OPS of .965. This includes 17 RBI and two home runs all in just 21 games.
I'm not saying that Freeman needs to be called up tomorrow and handed the keys to a starting job. But it's hard to deny that his bat, even off the bench, could provide a big boost. He at least deserves some consideration.
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Photo Credit © Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
