Carlos Santana Having Career Year for the Indians

Perhaps the most polarizing player among fans of the Cleveland Indians, Carlos Santana is having a career year and helping lead the charge to the playoffs.

It’s been an interesting odyssey for Carlos Santana in his eight and half seasons in the Cleveland Indians organization. Acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in July of 2008 for Casey Blake, Santana has run the gauntlet from top prospect to rookie sensation, maligned slugger to on-base machine, afterthought to leadoff hitter.

There are two facts about Santana that his detractors tend attempt to ignore:

• He has been the most consistent hitter in Cleveland’s lineup since his first full season in 2011.
• He’s enjoying the best season of his career in 2016.

To the first point, the 30-year old native of the Dominican Republic averaged a 3.2 bWAR from 2011-2015, and is on his way towards that figure again this season, despite spending 88 games as the Indians’ designated hitter. He has averaged a .246/.364/.441 slash line per 162 games in his career, with 33 doubles, 26 home runs, 85 runs batted in, and a 120 OPS+.

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While the batting average is on the low side and there are constant complaints on social media about how “clutch” he is, Santana is among the very best in baseball at getting on base, having never walked fewer than 91 times in a full season. His career ISO of .195 is also well above average in MLB.

To preface the second point, it is widely known that Santana is in the final season of a 5-year, $21 million deal, but there is a team option for the 2017 season at a cost of $12 million. Should Cleveland elect not to pick up that option, there is a $1.2 million buyout.

But the buyout is irrelevant because the Indians would be foolish not to exercise Santana’s option. That $12 million figure may seem high to some, but on the free agent market, the club would be hard-pressed to find a player of similar production for that price. If anything, the Tribe should be considering an extension for Santana.

This season has been a career year for him, though his stats are not that far off from his career averages. In 149 games through Thursday night’s action, he is slashing .253/.361/.492 with 27 doubles, 34 homers, 83 RBIs, and an OPS+ of 116. The home run total is a career-high, and has him tied for 12th on the franchise’s all-time career list with Joe Carter (151), and he is closing in on new personal bests in runs scored, hits, RBIs, and OPS.

When manager Terry Francona decided to try Santana out as the team’s leadoff man against right-handed pitching, Cleveland’s offense really began to take shape, and has excelled to the tune of the second-highest scoring team in the American League.

In 81 games at the top of the order, Santana has a .247/.372/.481 slash line with 15 doubles, 19 home runs, 39 RBIs, and an OPS+ of 123. He has hit five longballs leading off the game, including in his very first at-bat in the spot against Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers back on April 22nd.

Throw in the fact that Santana is also serviceable defensively at first base and has vastly improved as a base runner, and what you have is one of the most underappreciated Indians in recent history.

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With the postseason approaching, Santana is playing some of the best baseball of his career. For the Tribe to make a deep run in the playoffs and potentially reach the World Series, the team will need him to continue doing what he does, regardless of whether he ever receives the credit he deserves.