Eddie Rosario 2021 Outlook: Eddie Rosario signed a one year, $8 million deal with the Indians on Friday.
Rosario spent the past six years with the Minnesota Twins. He played most of his career in left field, and that is likely where he will play in Cleveland. Adding Rosario to the lineup brings Cleveland a replacement for some of the home runs they will miss after trading away Francisco Lindor. I like the lineup in Cleveland – the heart of the order is full of power bats. Though Andres Gimenez, Cesar Hernandez and Amed Rosario won’t strike much fear into opposing pitchers, the power combination of Rosario, Franmil Reyes, Josh Naylor and Jose Ramirez should. Add in an excellent pitching staff, and Cleveland may not be as bad as some might expect.
Eddie Rosario 2021 Outlook: MLB Betting, Fantasy Baseball Tips
On the surface, it appeared as if trading Lindor to the Mets was a sign that Cleveland was giving up. Cleveland finished either first or second in the division every year since 2016. Those finishes coincide with each full season Lindor played. However, the team is still full of talent, and adding Rosario to the mix should help to alleviate some worry for Cleveland fans and keep the team competitive.
While Rosario’s defense is a bit lackluster, his bat is not. In each season where he’s had at least 500 at bats, he’s hit 24 home runs or more. He’s a career .277 hitter, according to Baseball Reference, which isn’t going to get him into the Hall of Fame, but is excellent for fantasy baseball managers, especially when you combine that with 25-30 home run, 90-100 RBI potential.
Eddie Rosario: 2020 Review
Unlike many players in 2020, Rosario didn’t suffer too much. His .248 BABIP was the product of a small sample size and is important to consider when looking at his .257 batting average. He has a career .305 BABIP, so I expect some positive regression in his 2021 batting average. He ended 2020 with 13 home runs, 31 runs and 42 RBI. If prorated to 144 games (from 2017-2019 he’s played between 137-151 games, so I averaged them), he would have been on pace for 32 home runs, 78 runs, and 106 RBI. It’s possible he at least gets close to some of these numbers in a full season in Cleveland.
Eddie Rosario 2021 Fantasy Outlook
There are some players like Nolan Arenado whose stat line will be affected by a change in home stadiums, but Rosario should not be one of them. He’ll be playing in the same division he’s played in for the last six years, so the change in home venue shouldn’t impact his stat line much, if at all. What will impact his stats the most is how Cleveland aligns their batting order. If he bats cleanup behind Oscar Mercado, Hernandez and Ramirez, he should have an excellent shot at reaching 100 RBI in 2021. There should be some return to normalcy in his batting average. He’s a career .277 hitter, but a .280 season is realistic. At a minimum, I’d expect 25 home runs. A stat line like that would put him firmly in the top 20-25 outfielders, which is where you should value him going into 2021.
⚾ After you finish reading “Eddie Rosario 2021 Outlook” and decide on your Cleveland Indians wagers, place a bet on MLB futures at any of our preferred sportsbooks. ⚾
