MLB Players Power Rankings (3): Michael Brantley, Houston Astros
Week-16 Stats: 1.000 SLG | 0.613 wOBA | 301 wRC+ | 0.6 fWAR
Known primarily for being injury-prone, many teams steered clear of Michael Brantley during the offseason. Now, most teams a beating themselves for having let such an elite bat slip through their fingertips.
This season, Brantley is having the best season of his career. The best part of it all is that he’s set to play in 140+ games for the second consecutive season, setting aside all questions about him being injury-prone.
With Brantley’s .332 / .392 / .530 slash line blessing an already deep Houston Astros lineup that already features the likes of Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and George Springs into the scariest lineup in baseball.
During week-16, Brantley slashed .474 / .545 / 1.000 and had a multi-home run game, helping the Astros carry a five-game winning streak into week-17.
In an outfield that ranks 22nd in hitting (.252 AVG and .745 OPS), according to Barstool’s Jarred Carribis, Brantle (.332 AVG and .921 OPS) y has been just the blessing the Astros needed to remain the dominant team they’ve been in the recent past.
Michael Brantley got $32 million over two years from the Astros, an absolute steal for a guy who’s hitting .328 with a .905 OPS. The Indians outfield combined is hitting .252 with a .745 OPS this season, 22nd out of 30 teams. pic.twitter.com/Zs7Dim7V3w
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) July 21, 2019
What’s more, the Astros will be fortunate enough to keep Brantley for one more season after this one at $16M, a bargain of the best kind.