Cleveland Guardians superstar Jose Ramirez seems to be coming around after a rather mediocre start to his season, at least for his standards. While he wasn’t really showing his best version, the rookies and young players were the ones doing the heavy lifting.
Chase DeLauter carried the Guardians in the first couple of weeks. Travis Bazzana has been a dynamo ever since coming up in late April. Brayan Rocchio and Angel Martinez have taken the next step in their development. And so on.
Part of being young and inexperienced, however, is the fact that it makes hitters more prone to slumps. MLB pitchers are the toughest in the world, and once they exploit a weakness, they make adjustments very quickly.
It’s now on these young, up-and-coming stars to adjust back and show they have what it takes to survive in the majors. It’s no longer about making it to The Show, but being able to keep a roster spot and contribute after an adjustment period.
Some of these hitters are going through some stuff at the moment. DeLauter, for example, hit just .136 (3-for-22) during the six-game road trip and has been struggling for a while. Bazzana went 4-for-24 in Texas and New York. These things happen. But manager Stephen Vogt is not worried.
“It’s baseball. It’s the big leagues. The book only gets thicker on you as you stick around longer, and you have to continue to make adjustments and stay stubborn to what makes you great,” Vogt said, per Cleveland.com. “Sometimes as a young player, you can think yourself into a little change that turns into a big change over time, and that’s what we’re trying to avoid. It’s okay to have a tough week; it’s okay to have a rough month. You look at any good player, they’re going to have a month where their numbers aren’t up where they normally are.”
The most important takeaway for these young stars is that they have a manager who believes in them and is willing to let them struggle for a bit, as long as they show some fight and the right state of mind to overcome their issues with work and a plan.
Bazzana and DeLauter have shown more than enough to give them a long leash. They both have top prospect backgrounds and incredible bat-to-ball skills, not to mention plate discipline, power, and speed.
Even with their recent struggles, both remain above-average offensive players for the season as a whole. Bazzana is sporting a 120 wRC+, and DeLauter is at 106.
Even the best prospects and players in the majors go through slumps from time to time. The Guardians will be patient because they know that they can reap the benefits in the form of production relatively soon.
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