Why Guardians' offense may be better without Rhys Hoskins

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Why Guardians' offense may be better without Rhys Hoskins originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Cleveland Guardians have an interesting offensive dynamic. 

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Similar to the Milwaukee Brewers, they don't hit many home runs. 

The only difference is that the Brewers rank second in the Majors in runs scored. Cleveland ranks 26th. 

The Guardians' pitching staff is heavily relied upon. But the AL Central club should do its best to target more power this offseason. 

They signed veteran 1B/DH Rhys Hoskins to help them hit more home runs, but he has just 13 round-trippers and has been on the injured list for over a month. 

"Because of a back injury, Hoskins hasn't suited up for the Guardians since August 18," Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer wrote. "Maybe it's not a coincidence that they're 20-10 since then?" 

Hoskins has a career-worst -0.9 bWAR with a .682 OPS and 31.5% strikeout rate. 

Unless he's primed for a significant turnaround, the Guardians can't risk putting a player with those numbers in a postseason lineup. 

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"It's a mean thing to say about a genuinely likeable player who has had a really good major league career," Rymer wrote about Cleveland's record without Hoskins. "But then again, when you're a bat-only player who can only hit .179 with a 93 OPS+, you have to know there's no avoiding shade." 

At his best, Hoskins was a threat to hit 20-30 homers per year while posting an OPS above .800. 

But those days seem to be far behind him now. 

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