CLEVELAND, Ohio — Amed Rosario went from being a guy who did not know where he would be playing each day early in the 2021 season to one of the more sure things in Cleveland’s lineup by the time August rolled around.
Once he took over as the club’s everyday shortstop, Rosario reached his comfort level and blossomed into one of Cleveland’s most productive offensive weapons.
He excelled after the All-Star break, slashing .309/.339/.457 with 117 total bases in 60 games. On the season, Rosario hit .348 against cut fastballs and .318 against changeups.
On Friday’s Cleveland Baseball Talk Podcast, Paul Hoynes and Joe Noga discussed Rosario’s first season with Cleveland and what the future looks like for the 25-year-old Dominican native.
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Rosario’s 2021 stats
| G | AVG | OPS | HR | RBI | R | K | BB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 141 | .282 | .731 | 11 | 57 | 77 | 120 | 31 |
Grading Rosario’s 2021 season
Rosario received an “A” grade in hitting from cleveland.com’s Paul Hoynes in his postseason recap of Cleveland’s offense. Hoynes noted that despite the upheaval of being traded in the offseason and having to replace Francisco Lindor, Rosario rose to the occasion.
Where Rosario succeeded
The month of August is where Rosario found the most success. In 26 games he totaled 42 hits including eight doubles, three triples and four home runs. His .372 average and .981 OPS were career highs for a single month and he posted a blistering 163 wRC+. He had 12 multi-hit games and ended the month with a five-hit game (including two home runs) against Kansas City.
Where Rosario struggled
Rosario started slow, due in part to all of his positional uncertainty having opened the season in center field. Through July 31, he was slashing .264/.310/.378 and had a wRC+ of 86, well below league average (100). Though he was making hard contact regularly, his batting average on balls in play was .321 and he had a 20% strikeout rate.
What he needs to do in 2022
As long as Rosario continues to produce at the plate the way he did for the majority of 2021, Cleveland will likely be able to live with whatever he is able to give them defensively at shortstop. He committed 10 errors and posted a .976 fielding percentage, but cost Cleveland with -8 defensive runs saved per Fangraphs.com.
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