Gavin Lux: The Unlikely Cleanup Hitter for the Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds have been in need of a reliable cleanup hitter. Many, including myself, assumed that part of that equation was a power hitter but maybe Gavin Lux is proving that wrong.

Lux has the second-most plate appearances on the team, currently, and has a 99 OPS+. His overall performance as a hitter is the best for any Reds player with more than 40 plate appearances. Better than Elly De Al Cruz, even.

While he hasn’t done it by hitting the long ball, or pouring in extra-base hits, Lux has been consistent at putting the ball in play and getting on base. Just over 36% of the time he’s reaching first.

He’s also doing the thing any cleanup hitter needs to: get hits with runners in scoring position. Lux is 6-for-15 (.400 batting average) with six RBI.

More power is certainly preferable, but Lux has been a more valuable cleanup hitter than you may expect.

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