Myles Straw Clears Waivers, Sent To Triple-A Columbus
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw has cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A Columbus. Straw struggled mightily at the dish last year, slashing .238/.301/.297 with one home run and 20 steals across 518 PA. He will likely be called up when an injury happens, but the speedster is unlikely to have a role big enough to warrant consideration in fantasy leagues. Will Brennan and Estevan Florial will likely benefit from the move and gain more playing time, but also do not need to be considered in fantasy.
The Cleveland Guardians placed outfielder Myles Straw on waivers on Friday. Straw is fully expected to clear waivers and still has minor-league options remaining, so he's likely to open the 2024 season at Triple-A Columbus. It doesn't mean that we won't see the 29-year-old with the Guardians at some point this year, but he's obviously off the fantasy radar for now after hitting .238/.301/.297 with a home runs, 29 RBI, 20 stolen bases and 52 runs scored in 147 games in his second full season with the Guardians in 2023. With Straw out of the picture on the major-league roster to begin the year, Cleveland could mix and match in center field among names like Ramon Laureano, Esteven Florial and Tyler Freeman. Florial is the most intriguing player in AL-only setups.
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw is not practicing on Thursday due to a viral infection. The 29-year-old is in a battle with Estevan Florial for the primary center-field role in Cleveland as he is coming off another disastrous season at the plate. Straw hit just .238 with one home run and a .598 OPS across 518 plate appearances with the Guardians a season ago, production that graded out 31% below the league average, as per his 69 wRC+. He did swipe 20 bags on the season but his power has been non-existent in his career as he has slugged just six home runs in nearly 2,000 trips to the plate. Straw's usually stellar defensive metrics also took a hit last season as he continues to remain far from the fantasy radar.
Myles Straw, Esteven Florial Competing For Center Field Job
Cleveland Guardians hitting coach Chris Valaika said this week that outfielder Myles Straw is competing for the center field job this spring, and The Athletic's Jason Lloyd gets the sense that the team would love to see Estevan Florial claim the job in spring training. Ramon Laureano has plenty of experience in center field, but Florial is the one that manager Stephen Vogt called "a specimen." Florial, 26, had no logical path to playing time with the Yankees. He hit 28 home runs at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2023 but has never had more than 71 plate appearances in a big-league season. Straw offers Cleveland Gold Glove-caliber defense, but he hasn't hit much. Florial strikes out too much, but there's no debating that he offers a much higher offensive ceiling in center field than Straw does.
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw is absent from the starting lineup for Monday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. This appears to be a routine day off for the 28-year-old speedster. Straw has been struggling, slashing 234/.302/.295 with zero homers, 15 RBI and 10 steals on the season. Will Brennan will start in center field and bat seventh versus right-hander Quinn Priester on Monday.
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw went 2-for-4 with a walk, two runs, and a stolen base in Wednesday's 6-4 extra-inning win over Oakland. Straw got on base three times and stole his fifth base of the season in Wednesday's win. The 28-year-old has stolen a base in three of his last four games. He is slashing .364/.517/.409 with two RBI, six runs, and five stolen bases over seven games in 2023. Straw continues to get on base and display his elite speed in 2023. Fantasy managers searching for steals should look to add Straw in all league formats.
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw (knee) is expected to make his spring training debut on Thursday. He has been held out of Cactus League games so far due to knee soreness and will hit ninth against the San Francisco Giants. Straw slashed .221/.291/.273 for the Guardians in 2022 and added some hardware after securing a Gold Glove award. He swiped 21 bags and maintained a 14.6% strikeout rate along with 65 OPS+. He isn't an offensive-minded player, but his defense and plate discipline surely make up for it. While Straw did amass a .696 OPS in 2021, he hasn't proven enough to be considered a competent hitter. The 28-year-old is hoping to be somewhat productive at the plate this season and hopes to grease the wheels in spring training.
Cleveland Guardians center fielder Myles Straw (knee) will miss the first couple of Cactus League games in spring training due to soreness behind his right knee. However, manager Terry Francona said the team is just being cautious early in camp. Straw will have plenty of time to recover in time for Opening Day, but it's certainly injury to watch for a player that relies on speed as the biggest part of his game. The 28-year-old finished his first full season in Cleveland in 2022 with a .221/.291/.273 slash line with a .564 OPS, no home runs, 32 RBI, 72 runs scored and 21 stolen bases in 152 games. Straw doesn't much power to speak of, but he's stolen 51 bases in the last two seasons and will remain a strong steals target late in fantasy drafts.
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw had a strong day at the plate on Thursday in the team's 8-2 loss to the Chicago White Sox. He went 3-for-4 with a run scored while hitting ninth in the batting order. Straw is still searching for his first home run of the season, but he's heating up at the plate in September, going 16-for-48 (.333) with two doubles, two RBI, three runs scored and two stolen bases in 13 games played. Overall, the 27-year-old is slashing just .212/.281/.263 with 25 RBI, 60 runs scored and 17 stolen bases in 476 at-bats. Straw is mostly valuable for his speed in deeper fantasy leagues.
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw isn't in the lineup for Tuesday's matchup with the Baltimore Orioles and right-hander Spenser Watkins. The veteran is batting .199 with a .274 on-base percentage and 15 stolen bases in 476 plate appearances this season. He'll head to the bench with Will Benson stepping in as the team's center fielder. Benson is hitting ninth against Baltimore. In 33 plate appearances with Cleveland this season, the 24-year-old is batting .133 with a .212 on-base percentage. Fantasy managers are probably better off looking elsewhere for streaming options in the outfield.
Myles Straw
• CF
•
Guardians
