Will Brennan

In another era, Brennan might have been viewed differently given that he has put up high batting averages consistently throughout his time in professional baseball. However, modern fans and front offices can see that it's a rather empty batting average. Brennan managed five home runs and 13 steals in 455 big-league plate appearances last season at the age of 25. Worst of all is the fact that Brennan has been averse to drawing walks, managing just a 3.6 BB% and .308 OBP through 500 plate appearances in the majors to date. He's a quality defender in right field and projects to start there for the Guardians on Opening Day, but there will be pressure on him to provide more offensively in his second full season.

Brennan was a popular favorite among prospect analysts all season, but the secret is out after he impressed in a brief cup of coffee with the big club. The Guardians have built their offense around high-contact hitters, and Brennan fits that mold perfectly. He had an 11.5 K% across Double-A, Triple-A and the majors, and his 8.9 K% in 45 MLB plate appearances was his lowest mark at any level since rookie ball. Brennan's BB% dipped from 10.8% at Double-A to 7.6% at Triple-A and 4.4% in the majors, so at this stage it's more about contact than patience. He hit above .310 at all three stops last year. As a lefty hitter with a good glove and a dash of power and speed in the minors, Brennan is similar in many ways to teammate Steven Kwan. Like with Kwan, Brennan's hard-hit data isn't very impressive and he hit just 14 homers on the year, so the hit tool has to be as good as advertised for the whole package to work. While he isn't as good of a defender as Myles Straw, he has a much higher overall ceiling due to Straw's woeful offense. The Guardians have several big-league-ready outfielders waiting for an opportunity, but Brennan is probably the best of the bunch, and could take over for Straw whenever the club is ready to shift him to a fourth outfielder role.