Guardians Rookie Still Needs To Work On Key Adjustment

Cleveland Guardians rookie Khalil Watson has been one of the most pleasant surprises of the last few weeks, contributing a solid .286/.306/.429 line and a 104 wRC+ in 36 plate appearances. He also has one homer, two stolen bases, and eight RBI.

At times, Watson has carried the Guardians’ offense in some of their most pressing games recently. He has injected some life into a stagnant, unproductive lineup and is currently working on a seven-game hitting streak.

He does, however, need to improve in one particular department, one that could make or break his major league career from this point forward: plate discipline.

The dynamic 23-year-old outfielder strikes out a lot. That much we knew, judging by his minor league performance. He fanned 28 percent of the time in Triple-A this year, for example.

That number has increased to 30.6 percent in his brief time in the majors, though. It’s a concerning development because he does have holes in his swing, holes that pitchers could exploit if he doesn’t improve.

To somewhat offset that vulnerability, the rookie had shown a solid 14.6 percent walk rate in Columbus, in 254 plate appearances. The problem is that, in MLB, that skill hasn’t translated yet.

He is drawing walks at a mediocre 2.8 percent clip, and that’s not going to cut it. Of course, it’s important to point out that it takes some time to adjust from Triple-A to MLB, the hardest baseball league in the world. Luckily for Watson, the Guardians are a patient organization and will likely keep giving him chances as long as he can do damage at the plate.

If Cleveland lets him develop, Watson is certainly capable of learning which pitches to take and which pitches to swing at. His solid walk rates in the minors give him a solid floor in that regard.

The former first-rounder has 20-20 potential in the majors as long as he can develop his plate discipline and produce enough to keep his wRC+ above the league average. And if Steven Kwan doesn’t start hitting soon and Watson keeps producing, the latter has a chance to steal the former’s job when Angel Martinez returns and Chase DeLauter is fully healthy.