The Cleveland Guardians, as a team, get on base at a decent clip. At 9.6 percent, their walk rate is the sixth-best in MLB and third-best in the American League. Hitting with runners in scoring position has been a problem all year, though.
Their 91 wRC+ with runners in scoring position (RISP) is the fourth-worst in baseball, just like their .236 batting average in that situation. These numbers, however, were even worse in early August, when the team acquired outfielder Jo Adell from the Los Angeles Angels.
The Adell trade could very well be Chris Antonetti’s latest stroke of genius. Not only did it mean that the Guardians would have a much-needed weapon against left-handed hitters, but it also gave them something very hard to predict yet so important in today’s game: a red-hot hitter with runners in scoring position.
Call it luck, making solid contact often, or fate, if you will, but Adell has been a beast with runners in second or third base.
According to the Cleveland Baseball Talk podcast, the former Angels outfielder is batting .379 with runners in scoring position since joining the Guardians. He has also driven in 21 runs in 23 games in his new uniform.
On Sunday, Adell hit a two-run double and an RBI single to lead his team to an 11-1 victory in the finale vs. the Kansas City Royals. He has the clutch gene, and he has given Cleveland’s lineup exactly what it needed: a threat against lefties and someone with cold blood to deliver in the big moments.
“The reason that this team has been able to turn things around, at least in the month of August with runners in scoring position, it starts with Jo Adell and what he’s been able to do,” Cleveland.com’s Joe Noga said.
The Guardians’ offense is eighth in MLB with a 105 wRC+ in August, and that uptick in offensive performance has a lot to do with the dynamic outfielder. He is sporting a very solid 121 wRC+ since coming over from Los Angeles and already has people talking about a potential contract extension at some point.
Adell has been everything Guardians fans wanted around the deadline: a productive outfielder with power, a knack for producing in big spots, and the ability to consistently hit southpaws. All that for the cost of a catching prospect.
NEXT: Guardians Bolster Roster With 2 Key Additions
