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ANALYSIS: New York Yankees first baseman Tyler Austin has made the most of a Spring Training injury to Greg Bird and has been one of the best rookies of the 2018 season. Austin was actually sent down to Triple-A to start the season after the team added Neil Walker, but, in 76 plate appearances, has an .894 OPS and five home runs.
The free swinging Austin (27 strikeouts and just six walks), has also added six doubles this season and has scored 12 times and knocked in 16. A powerful Yankees lineup has aided a lot of Austin's production, as, even though he is normally hitting 6th or 7th, he is able to knock in the sluggers in the middle of the Bombers' lineup. A 40.5% hard hit ball rate may seem unsustainable (even though he had a 40% hard hit ball rate in 20 games for New York last season), but his 40.5% ground ball rate shows that he could unlock even more power if he hit the ball in the air more often.
Matchups against the Red Sox and Athletics may not be great for Austin, but he has shown that he is able to make a mark in the Yankees' lineup. He is a must-add in dynasty formats and has CI appeal in deeper leagues.
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