Angel

Genao

Genao has grounded into a double play in three straight games and is 1-for-15 in his last four games. He hits the ball fairly hard and doesn’t strike out much, but the 72 percent groundball rate... well, that’s a pretty big problem. The Guardians aren’t helping themselves by treating him as an everyday player right now.

It looks to be nothing more than a routine day off for the superstar third baseman after playing in both halves of Friday’s doubleheader and Saturday’s contest as well. Look for him to make an appearance off the bench in a key late-game situation if needed. Angel Genao will cover third base in his absence and bat sixth against Tigers’ right-hander Jackson Jobe on Sunday afternoon in Cleveland.

Geno collected one of just three Guardians’ hits on the evening — all of them singles. The 22-year-old has held his own in his first exposure to big league pitching, slashing .255/.314/.362 with a pair of homers and six RBI in his first 102 plate appearances.

Genao’s home run was his second of the season. He hit a two-run shot off Blue Jays reliever Joe Mantiply in the seventh inning. Genao pinch hit for Travis Bazzana with the left-handed Mantiply on the mound. He’s not playing everyday, with makes him a tough sell for mixed league fantasy managers. The home run was nice to see from a promising young player, though.

It seemed last weekend that Brayan Rocchio might be becoming the odd man out in the Cleveland infield, but he’s starting a fifth straight game tonight after sitting out two in a row. That’s led to less time for Genao. His only start the last three games came when José Ramírez was DHing on Wednesday.

The 33-year-old superstar will get a rare day off in this one, which is very unfortunate for fantasy managers as they’re at Coors Field and taking on right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano. Expect to see him off the bench if needed on Sunday. Angel Genao will start in his place at third base and bat fifth for the Guardians.

Prior to Friday, Rocchio had received just one day off since the break and had started 122 of 128 games this season. Tonight, though, he again finds himself on the bench in favor of Angel Genao at shortstop. Rocchio has hit .183/.230/.270 during the second half, lowering his overall OPS from .750 to .685.

Bazzana has sat against two of the three lefties the Guardians have faced since the callup of Angel Genao, who is playing second base and batting seventh tonight. It seems like it’ll be a trend unless an injury opens up more time for Genao at other positions. Bazzana is hitting just .192/.302/.240 against southpaws thus far.

Genao takes a seat with Travis Bazzana at the keystone and Brayan Rocchio at shortstop. The 22-year-old top prospect has made some serious waves, hitting .368 (7-for-19) with one homer and two RBI in five games since being promoted from Triple-A Columbus last week. He boasts impressive contact skills and has shown some impressive over-the-fence pop over the last few months. He’s seeing the ball extremely well at the moment and should be rostered in all fantasy formats, even if he’s going to cede the occasional start to Bazzana at second base when Rocchio is in the lineup.

Genao has impressed since being called up Wednesday, and while it comes in a losing effort, the 22-year-old was able to collect his first MLB homer with a solo homer off Jordan Hicks in the seventh inning. It’s a small sample, but one that contains a slash of .438/.471/.625. Obviously that’s not sustainable, but it’s a pretty good indicator of the talent that Genao possesses. The question will be how he’ll adjust when the league does the same.