Atlanta’s Eddie Rosario sticks his tongue out in glee after hitting a three-run homerun against the Dodgers’ Tony Goslin in the ninth inning of NLCS Game 4 Wednesday at Dodger Stadium.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Eddie Rosario who was on display in the playoffs for Atlanta isn’t the same Eddie Rosario that Cleveland fans watched for the first four months of the regular season.
If the Braves beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS to face Houston in the World Series, Rosario could very well be the series MVP. That’s how he was good.
Atlanta entered Saturday night’s game with a 3-2 lead over the Dodgers. Rosario is hitting 0.571 (12 for 21) with two homers and six RBIs in the streak. He has two four-hit games in the NLCS. For the playoffs, Rosario is hitting .471 (16 for 34) with two homers and eight RBIs.
When the Indians signed Rosario for a one-year, $ 8 million contract in February, they knew a few things about him.
The only thing Rosario did with the Indians was continue his streak. At best, it was a pedestrian streak before he was traded to the Braves while on the injured list on July 30. They included $ 500,000 in the swap to help pay off the remaining $ 3 million on Rosario’s contract, while bringing Pablo Sandoval back into the deal. The Kung Fu Panda never appeared with the Indians.
In 78 games with the Indians, Rosario has reached 0.254 (72 for 283) with 15 doubles, seven homers and 46 RBIs. In 33 regular season games with the Braves, he scored 0.271 (26 for 96) with four doubles, two triples, seven homers and 16 RBIs. On September 19 against the Giants, Rosario hit for the round on five shots.
Before arriving in Cleveland, Rosario reached 0.420 (60 for 143) with 12 doubles, 11 homers and 25 RBIs at Progressive Field. This year, he touched .209 (29 for-145) with two homers and 19 RBIs at the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.
Some of the Guardians say Rosario was happy in Cleveland. From the outside looking inside, there were times when it seemed like Rosario would rather be anywhere except Cleveland. In a post-game interview, Rosario said he was surprised it was so cold in Cleveland. It came from a guy who had spent his entire career in Minneapolis.
There was speculation that Rosario was not happy to have been separated from the Twins when it was not put out to a tender in December. He said it wasn’t.
Fans, on occasion, have questioned Rosario’s agitation. Those with the ball club, however, pointed to Rosario’s aggressive play in left field, his ability to make plays to his left and right and challenge the walls of the outfield, as a sign that he was fully engaged.
The Guardians have been studying Rosario’s swing since he woke up in Atlanta. They saw no difference in the swing he used in Cleveland. What they saw was the player haunting them with the Twins, a player kicking throws from his ankles to his eyes, while driving the ball across all fields. The player they rarely saw in an Indian uniform.
It looks like the next batting coach will come from outside the organization. The Guardians have interviewed candidates since Ty Van Burkleo’s sacking on October 6. Van Burkleo had been the Cleveland batting coach for the previous nine seasons.
As the organization reduces the search among external candidates, it will reorganize itself internally to find a replacement for the late Carter Hawkins, the new general manager of the Chicago Cubs. Hawkins had been with the Indians for 14 seasons before recently joining the Cubs.
Manager Terry Francona’s coaching staff has been fairly stable since joining in 2013. But the front office has often been the target of other MLB teams.
Derek Falvey left in 2016 to lead baseball operations for the Twins. In 2015, Mark Shapiro left Cleveland to become president and CEO of the Blue Jays. Ross Atkins accompanied Shapiro to become General Manager of Toronto.
Chris Antonetti, president of baseball operations, says having an active succession plan “is part of running a successful business. You have to think about how you can continually develop leaders to contribute. … That’s why we spend so much time trying to hire great people. We know that if we keep hiring great people, people will leave. But hopefully we will have other people who will have the opportunity to expand their roles. “
The Fall Guardian League in Goodyear, Ariz. Wrapped up on Saturday, but the Arizona Fall League will run through November.
Richie Palacios, Cleveland’s 2018 third-round pick, is off to a good start with the AFL Scottsdale Scorpions. He reached 0.304 (7 for 23) with three doubles, two homers and six RBIs. He slashed 0.304 / 0.429 0.696 after a regular season that saw him reach a combined 0.297 (106 for 357) with 33 doubles, four triples, seven homers and 48 RBIs in Class AA Akron and Class AAA Columbus.
Palacios is an infield-outfielder, but plays the outfield in Arizona. Greg DiCenzo, manager of Class A Lake County for two years, is the manager of Scottsdale.
In the instruction league, outfielder Steven Kwan and midfielder Brayan Rocchio stood out. During the regular season, Kwan reached .328 (97 for 296) with 15 doubles, four triples, 12 homers and 44 RBIs for Class AA Akron and Class AAA Columbus. Rocchio hit .277 (122 for-441) with 26 doubles, five triples, 15 homers and 63 RBIs in the A Lake County and Akron classes. They are eligible for the Rule 5 draft in December.
Among the young players in the camp, outfielder Will Brennan and Angel Martinez were impressive. During the season, Brennan reached 0.285 (111 for 388) with 28 doubles, six homers and 50 RBIs in Lake County and Akron. Martinez hit .241 (91 for-377) with 20 doubles, six triples, seven homers and 46 RBIs in Lynchburg Class A.
Phil Maton, who first struggled after the Indians sent him to the Astros for center fielder Myles Straw on July 30, is heading to the World Series. In seven appearances in the ALDS and ALCS this year, Maton has allowed one run in 6 2/3 innings. He took out three and walked one. … The Red Sox outscored the Astros, 25-18, taking a 2-1 lead in the ALCS. They hit a record three Grand Slam tournaments along the way. Then they got cold. The Astros outscored the Red Sox 23-3 with three straight wins. Kyle Schwarber went 0 for 12, Alex Verdugo 1 for 8, JD Martinez 0 for 6 and Kike Hernandez 2 for 13 during that streak to send the Red Sox home.
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