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Fantasy Baseball Radar #15: A Guardians Gambit

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The AL Central has been disregarded in baseball conversations all season. Not to say it wasn’t understandable. The AL East is one of the most talented divisions in baseball history, and the Astros and Mariners’ dual dominance gives the AL West two WS contenders. Currently, the AL Central doesn’t sport a single team that would even grab the 3rd wild card spot, but I’d start paying attention to the Cleveland Guardians.

 

With 8 wins in their last 10, the Guardians are getting hot at just the right time. Upcoming matchups against the Rays, White Sox, Royals, and Rangers should give the Guardians momentum going into the playoffs. Tito Francona’s Guardians should make a run to end the season and comfortably win the AL Central. This rise gives fantasy baseball players a good opportunity to end the season on a good note. Make the gambit and open up the championship round by starting these Guardians players:

 

Oscar Gonzalez (27-47% rostered)

The unranked prospect has lit a fire under the Guardians and has been one of the most exciting players in the majors over these past two months. Since making the majors late in May, Gonzalez holds a 126 OPS+. Gonzalez has slashed .345/.391/.603 in the past two weeks, prompting a shot into fantasy relevance. 

 

I’d exercise caution though. Gonzalez has extremely poor plate discipline (bottom 1% for chase rate), but when he hits, he hits hard and well. A .345 BABIP for such an unsound hitter shows that regression is bound to happen, but who’s to say the magic runs out so soon?

 

Myles Straw (21-24% rostered)

In many ways, Myles Straw is the antithesis of Oscar Gonzalez. He’s got extremely good plate discipline, he’s an incredible defender, he doesn’t barrel, he doesn’t make contact, and even when he does it’s always a weak hit, but he’s still on the same list. 

 

Straw’s excellence in the field and in plate discipline drills gives him the everyday spot in center field and the 9th spot in the Guardians lineup. The 9 spot is a prime position as it almost ensures that Straw scores a run after Jose Ramirez and Amed Rosario get to the plate. Straw is going to continue picking up walks and will become a roto goldmine over the next two weeks if Steven Kwan, Jose Ramirez, and Amed Rosario keep raking. Roster Straw in roto formats and deeper leagues. 

 

Josh Naylor (34-53% rostered)

The Guardians’ clean-up man is the clean-up man for the Guardians. I’m salivating just thinking about the RBI opportunities that Naylor’s going to pick up over these next two weeks. The heart of this Guardians team should thrive if the rest of the team keeps producing as they have lately. 

 

Cody Morris (2-7% rostered)

With starter Zach Plesac out for the foreseeable future after another rage-induced hand injury (real fans remember when Plesac injured his hand after “aggressively ripping his shirt off”), Cody Morris should have the 5th starter spot on lock. Through 4 starts, Morris has an ERA of 2.30 and an ERA+ of 170. It’s a minuscule sample size but Morris could put up some great starts to close out the season. 

 

See last week’s fantasy radar here

Picture attribution: Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
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