How important will a Myles Straw bounce-back season be for the Cleveland Guardians

Myles Straw is looking for a bounce-back season at the plate for the Cleveland Guardians.

Myles Straw is actually one of the Cleveland Guaridians’ best all-around players. Don’t laugh, defensively, he is that good. He’s got incredible range and a solid throwing arm for a center-fielder, and in his first full year as a Major League starter, he hit .271, with an on-base percentage of .348. He isn’t Barry Bonds circa 2002, but Straw is a solid offensive player.

Or he was until he nose-dived in 2022. His batting average and on-base percentage fell 50 points for each at least from ’21 to ’22. He rebounded as the year went on, clawing to a .221 batting average, but the team wants more from Straw this year.

Covering the Corner claims that the Guardians coaches are hoping Straw stops swinging at junk and are encouraging him to bunt for singles far more often. He’s got the speed to do so, and it’ll help him utilize his best offensive asset; his speed.

Straw on the bases is a good thing, as he’s almost too fast to catch. He had 21 stolen bases in 2022 alone, on just 22 opportunities. But even if he doesn’t raise his averages, how important is Straw to the Guardians’ future success?

Is Myles Straw’s offense that important to the Cleveland Guardians?

Just like in every other two-way sport like hockey, soccer, and basketball, you want a guy who can be good on both ends. Yet, there are going to be guys who only excel on offense and only excel on defense. Is Straw someone who can only dominate on defense? Maybe, but that’s not a bad thing.

You sometimes need defensive-minded players to succeed. The Guardians have had a few of them, like Einar Diaz and most recently Austin Hedges. Does Straw need to be Mike Trout at the plate to warrant a spot in the lineup?

No, that’s not his game. He needs to be an elite-level defender, which is his game. He’s not the most important player offensively and he doesn’t need to be. He doesn’t need to be as good as Jose Ramirez at the plate. You don’t want him to be a bad hitter, by any means, but you also aren’t going to be too upset if he is barely an average offensive player.

Straw’s value to this team is deeper than just getting on base and because of that reason, he is in no real jeopardy of losing his spot. Unless he completely falls off, that is.