Travis Bazzana already has MLB pundits dreaming about October impact for Guardians 

While Travis Bazzana didn’t make a huge impact for the Guardians in his first two games at the big league level, he’s obviously a talented player. He didn’t post a .422 on-base percentage in Triple-A off luck, obviously. 

But the Guardians’ decision to promote Bazzana wasn’t about what he was going to do in a random Mid-April series against the Rays; it was about what he can do for them for the rest of the season and, hopefully, in October. 

FanSided’s Zachary Rotman touched on that very subject earlier this week in a new piece highlighting how both Bazzana and Yankees starter Elmer Rodriguez could impact the postseason race throughout the summer. 

The Guardians' decision to promote Bazzana came with high marks from Rotman, who praised Bazzana’s ability to take pressure off José Ramírez. 

“Don't get me wrong: Ramírez remains their best player by far and deserves more help, but you can see pieces starting to form here. Steven Kwan makes as much contact as anybody, DeLauter has been awesome and Bazzana's ceiling is incredibly high,” he wrote. 

Travis Bazzana could have a huge impact for the Guardians come October 

While Bazzana hit seventh in the Guardians’ lineup in both of the games he appeared in against the Rays, it likely wouldn’t take much for him to move up in the lineup. 

Kwan seems entrenched in the leadoff spot (for now) and DeLauter is the perfect No. 2 hitter ahead of Ramírez, but the cleanup spot in the lineup has mostly been occupied by the underperforming Kyle Manzardo. 

Enter Bazzana, who showed a bit more pop in the past 12 months in the minors along with his strong command of the strike zone. 

The Guardians have gotten solid production from DeLauter and Ramírez at the top of their lineup and Daniel Schneemann and Brayan Rocchio at the bottom of it, but the middle has been a bit of a black hole. 

Adding Bazzana to that equation would change things given he has the skills to capitalize on the scoring opportunities the hitters in front of him will provide along with the ability to get on base for the hitters behind him. 

While it’s not as bad as it was last year when the Guardians made the postseason despite having one of the worst offenses in baseball, they’re always going to be in search of more offense, and Bazzana is one of the best exciting and young options in baseball. 

Bazzana may be a rookie, but the Guardians have spent the pat half decade showing they have no problem thrusting young players into big spots if they feel they’ve earned it. 

Bazzana should get plenty of chances to show that he belongs over the next five months. 

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