The Cleveland Guardians are always looking for young, talented hitters for their lineup, regardless of their position.
If you are young and promising, and you hit in the majors at least for a little while, the Guardians will find a spot for you. Kyle Manzardo did, and he finally established himself as a core piece in Cleveland last year.
The Guardians’ return in the Aaron Civale trade from 2023, Manzardo enjoyed a breakout campaign at the plate, bopping 27 home runs with a 113 wRC+ and 70 RBI in 531 plate appearances. He was expected to help Cleveland last year, but few people anticipated his consistent power and offensive presence in the middle of the lineup.
Here’s what you probably don’t know yet: Manzardo is capable of more. His .234/.313/.455 was solid, yes, but he has had much better performances in the minor leagues.
Granted, prospect development is not linear, and the fact that he was a 160-180 wRC+ guy in the low minors doesn’t necessarily mean he will morph into a 160-180 wRC+ hitter in the majors. However, keep in mind Manzardo is just 25 and will be entering his third MLB campaign.
He is in his physical prime and has already gone through everything a young hitter usually goes through: long slumps, a demotion to the minor leagues, and making adjustments on the go.
Last year, we saw some in-season growth. In the first half, he posted a 102 wRC+, barely league-average production. After the break, he began figuring out more things and put up a robust 126 wRC+.
Now, there are two things that Manzardo needs to work on if he wants to reach the next level in his development. One of them is figuring out lefties for good. His wRC+ against righties was a solid 119, but the number fell to 83 when a southpaw was on the mound. It wasn’t a disaster by any means, but any strides he makes there will be positively reflected on his final stat line.
The other department in which Manzardo could potentially improve is plate discipline. In the minor leagues, his walk rate was routinely over 10 percent, and his strikeout rate was almost always under 20 percent. Last season in the majors, he had a 9.0 percent walk rate and a 25.4 percent strikeout rate.
More walks and fewer strikeouts will increase that wRC+ and put him closer to stardom.
Manzardo’s ceiling is that of an All-Star hitter, and you can ask every scout who paid attention to him and his progression since his days with the Rays. He is off to a sluggish start to his Cactus League tenure this year, with a .503 OPS after Friday’s game. It doesn’t matter, though. The real games, the ones that count, will give us a better idea of where he is at the moment.
He still hasn’t come close to that, but the tools are there.
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