The Cleveland Guardians had high hopes for Travis Bazzana this season.
Things may not have worked out as expected, but there are still plenty of reasons to feel excited about him.
The 23-year-old is finding his groove as a slugger lately.
He’s gone 8-for-20 with three home runs and a 1.405 OPS in six games in September, according to MLB.com.
Of course, he knows a lot of that has to do with the Guardians’ coaching staff and the way they’ve dealt with him this season.
When asked about his days with the organization, the former No. 1 gushed about what it’s like to be a Guardian:
“Top to bottom, there are so many people pulling in the same direction,” Bazzana said. “There’s less ego here and that allows for honest conversations between staff and players. … I’m really happy to be a Guardian.”
Bazzana has shown steady signs of improvement against southpaws, which was one of the few glaring flaws in his game.
He missed six weeks with an injured oblique, but he made the most of the time off to work on his craft and sharpen those few things in his game.
Bazzana turned heads in his most recent outing with the Clippers, logging the first multi-game homer of his career.
That drove his OPS all the way to .905 against southpaws, compared to a .792 OPS against right-handers.
The Guardians may not call him up at all this season; that injury forced them to change their plans for their former No. 1 selection.
Still, this hasn’t been a waste of a season by any means, and he should be a strong candidate to not only make the roster but also get some actual playing time for the upcoming season.
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