When Yasiel Puig was traded to the Cleveland Indians at the July deadline, one couldn’t help but envision at least a dozen heat-seeking rockets finding their way onto Progressive Field’s Home Run Porch.
Oddly enough, Puig has left the yard just twice since taking over as the Tribe’s everyday cleanup hitter, and both instances took place on the road. Normally this would qualify as disappointing, and Puig’s showing in August admittedly left something to be desired.
He slashed just .253/.327/.404 over 110 plate appearances with a 90 wRC+. These aren’t terrible numbers, but the Indians needed a game-changing bat, not a serviceable one.