If not for being blocked by a couple of pretty solid hitters in their own right, Orioles third baseman Manny Machado would be forcing his way into the middle of the team's order in just his second season in the big leagues.
Despite batting second for the entire season, Machado drove in his 22nd run of the season Wednesday.
Machado has been able to drive so many runners in thanks to his abilities with runners on base. Machado is solid with the bases empty, posting a .300 batting average and .831 on-base plus slugging percentage, but he dwarfs those numbers when the guys in front of him get on base. Machado is hitting .333 with a .938 OPS with runners on base.
As he matures, the Orioles will almost certainly feel more comfortable getting Machado in the heart of the order. Once that happens, his RBI numbers are going to go through the roof. As it is, he is taking full advantage of every opportunity he gets to make an impact. Given his sky-high upside, Fantasy owners have to be in love with what Machado is doing right now.
Machado has seven multi-hit games in his last 11, while batting .404 in that span. At this point, it is hard to justify keeping the 20-year-old out of the lineup in any Fantasy league.