Houston Astros: Why the bench needs to be utilized more

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Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Marwin Gonzalez

Current Stat Line: .314/.409/.636/1.045 (BA, OBP, SLG, OPS)

Advanced Stats: 180 wRC+, .327 BABIP, 1.9 WAR

Gonzalez is considered the ultra utility man, in that he can play so many positions. His specialty may be the infield, but has also taken some reps in the outfield.

His first two seasons in the majors saw him with a very quiet bat. Only averaging .227 across the 2012 and 2013 seasons, he was best known for his defensive prowess early on.

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In the past 3 seasons, Gonzalez has improved the bat significantly, averaging near .280 in both 2014 and 2015. Though he only averaged .254 in 2016, that can be attributed to only having 154 plate appearances that year.

Start Me Up!

But this utility guy is playing like a starter in 2017, according to the current stats above. At this current pace, Gonzalez could have his first season of more than 20 home runs and over 75 RBI. Not too shabby for a guy off the bench!

Yuli Gurriel is the starting 1st baseman. And it’s not like he’s going at a snail’s pace, slashing a respectable .268/.307/.430/.737 in his first 179 at-bats on the season. Pretty well done, if you ask me!

However, it can be argued that Gonzalez deserves to get more starts. In only 140 at-bats so far in 2017, he’s doing significantly more damage. And his bat keeps on rolling!

That argument has even started a movement to get him into the All Star Game in July. It may be a long shot, but us fans may want to give it a try. It couldn’t hurt!

Side note: Voting goes on until July 4th, so get on it, Astros fans! Write Gonzo in!

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