Houston Astros: Why Jake Marisnick may finally break out in 2019

The Houston Astros have a solid roster full of high-quality players. There isn’t much opportunity for other guys in spite of all that, Jake Marisnick may be ready to break out.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen. I am aware that it is only a handful of games into Grapefruit League for the Houston Astros. And yes, Spring Training doesn’t always translate to the regular season or the playoffs. However, hear me out when I say that Jake Marisnick is already looking like our breakout candidate for 2019.

With Alex Bregman still rehabbing from elbow surgery, his offensive production will need to be spotted for a bit. Arguably, there are plenty of candidates on the roster to keep the proverbial line moving.

Nevertheless, the early aggressiveness of Marisnick is making heads turn. Especially, when you consider that Marwin Gonzalez just signed a deal with the Minnesota Twins, and Evan Gattis is still hanging around in free agency.

Marisnick, for his part, already has a pair of hits so far in Spring Training. Both hits have driven runners in. Most notably, there was THIS leadoff homer in game 1 of 2019:

Funnily enough, that bomb came off of none other than Max Scherzer of the Washington Nationals. Needless to say, it was poetry in motion. And EVERYBODY has taken notice of it. From The Houston Chronicle to MLB reporters and fans, it took the Houston Astros fan base by storm.

Granted, he has only had 5 at-bats these first couple of games. It comes with the territory of the game that even a power bat like Marisnick will have his fair share of slumps throughout the season.

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Regardless, he has made his adjustments, as he told The Houston Chronicle shortly after it happened. Here’s one of his quotes to the reporters:

"“I think in the whole scheme of things, I just tightened up a few things. I learned a lot last year between the first and second half and took the offseason to polish up some things and to see results in the first at bat and the first couple of swings was great. To see it happen this early in spring was awesome.”"

Marisnick has had all of the potential in the world for a while now. He is a superb defender with great range and a good arm. He’s willing to lay out for any ball to help out his pitcher. If his offense can finally gain some consistency and catch up to other parts of his game, look out. Here’s hoping that, in somehow and some way, it can be “Jake Day” every day in 2019!

The Houston Astros have been at Spring Training for almost a week now and the news has been all good out of camp so far. Here’s to hoping it stays that way and this time progresses and starts building towards a second championship now.