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How Will The Guardians’ Middle Infield Play Out?

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The Guardians have had a quiet offseason, only re-signing backup catcher Austin Hedges and acquiring a handful of relievers on one-year deals. They’ve yet to add anyone to a lineup that ranked 28th in scoring. They were the only team in the bottom 10 that made the postseason, so it’s unlikely they’ll get back to October without improving the offense.

Cleveland’s budgetary restrictions mean they’re never going to accomplish much via free agency. They’re unlikely to often package top prospects for marquee trade chips. The Guardians should make a smaller move or two in the back half of the offseason. They opened last season with a $103MM payroll, and RosterResource calculates their ’26 obligations around $78MM. Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com wrote as part of a reader mailbag over the weekend that he expected some kind of lineup acquisition on a short-term deal. Adding a complementary right-handed outfield bat would make sense with Lane Thomas departing via free agency.

That said, the majority of the necessary offensive improvements will have to come internally. That’s especially true in the middle infield, where serviceable free agent options are slim. Cleveland middle infielders combined for a .225/.289/.359 slash line with a 27.6% strikeout rate that was 29th in MLB (marginally better than the Angels’ 27.8% mark). That’s clearly an area for upgrade as the 2024 first overall pick gets closer to making his debut. How will things shake out?

The Incumbents

Of the five players who logged any middle infield action for Stephen Vogt’s club last year, only Will Wilson is off the roster. Last year’s middle infield usually involved a three-player rotation: Gabriel Arias mostly at shortstop, Daniel Schneemann in a multi-position role with a lot of second base work, and Brayan Rocchio bouncing between the up-the-middle spots.

Angel Martínez also started 25 games at second base but was more frequently used in center field. The Guardians could push him back into a utility role this year depending on their outfield performance. Chase DeLauter made the ALDS roster and should be ticketed for his regular season MLB debut on Opening Day. They could add a center fielder in free agency. Harrison Bader would be an excellent fit but might be out of their price range. Even if that’s the case, taking a buy-low flier on Chas McCormick as a fourth outfielder makes sense.

None of Arias, Rocchio, Schneemann or Martínez contributed much offensively. By measure of wRC+, they were all between 21 and 26 points below league average. Rocchio led the pack with a subpar .233 batting average and .290 on-base percentage. He hit five home runs in 115 games. Schneemann, Martínez and Arias each had 11 or 12 longballs.

The season trend lines were most favorable to Rocchio. He was at least within range of league average in the second half, batting .257/.313/.376 over his final 241 plate appearances. Arias (.203/.247/.356), Schneemann (.194/.268/.309), and Martínez (.207/.283/.313) all had terrible numbers after the All-Star Break. Arias and Rocchio were the starters in the postseason, though Vogt was quick to hit for Arias and use Schneemann off the bench.

Rocchio is probably on the strongest ground of the group, yet he remains a .222/.293/.327 hitter in more than 900 career plate appearances. He turns 25 tomorrow and is out of minor league options. He’ll break camp but shouldn’t be a lock to remain on the roster all season if he doesn’t build off the second half promise. Public metrics have been divided on his defense, grading him highly in 2024 but looking less favorably on last year’s work.

Arias, 26 in February, is also out of options. He has huge physical tools: plus bat speed and raw power, a solid glove, and an excellent arm. That’s undercut by an untenable approach. Arias chases tons of pitches off the plate and too frequently gets beat within the strike zone. He had the fourth-highest strikeout rate among hitters with 300+ plate appearances. No one missed more often on a per-pitch basis. Aside from occasionally running into a fastball for a homer, he’s not going to provide any offense.

Schneemann is a utility player who is a couple weeks away from his 29th birthday. He’ll work some walks and pop a few home runs against right-handed pitching, but there’s also too much swing-and-miss in his game to be a regular. He’s a .210/.290/.358 hitter with 17 homers and a 29% strikeout rate in 643 career plate appearances. Schneemann has a full slate of minor league options and could therefore be the first one sent down if/when the Guardians bring up a higher-upside player from the minor leagues.

The Prospects

Guards fans have eagerly awaited the arrival of second baseman Travis Bazzana since the club announced his selection with the top pick in the ’24 draft. It has become increasingly common for top college draftees to get to the big leagues before the end of their first full professional season. Bazzana didn’t move that quickly, at least in part because of recurring oblique issues. The Oregon State product had decent numbers between the top two minor league levels (.245/.389/.424 including seven rehab games in the Complex League), but he was limited to 84 games by a pair of IL stints.

Bazzana will be one of the most important players to watch in Spring Training. He remains one of the better offensive talents in the minors. He has 26 games of Triple-A experience. The Guardians could justify sending him back there to begin the season but should leave the door open to him breaking camp. Bazzana’s minor league approach probably tipped over the line from patient to passive, leading both to a ton of walks (17.6%) and a decent amount of strikeouts (24.3%). He’s not a finished product, but there’s a good chance he’s already a better hitter than Arias or Schneemann would be.

Vogt said at the Winter Meetings that Rocchio would get a lot of shortstop work during Spring Training (link via Zack Meisel of The Athletic). That’d leave the door open for Bazzana at second with Arias and/or Schneemann in a utility role. It also magnifies camp’s importance for 24-year-old second base prospect Juan Brito.

Brito has held a spot on the 40-man roster for three years but has yet to make his MLB debut. He would have gotten that opportunity last year but for thumb and hamstring injuries that both required surgery. He was limited to 24 Triple-A contests. The Guardians were granted a fourth option year, so they’re not forced to carry Brito on the MLB roster.

If they give the Opening Day second base job to Bazzana, Brito probably needs an injury or the more highly-regarded prospect to struggle in order to find his way into the lineup. He’s not a great athlete and unlikely to be all that effective as a multi-positional defender. Yet Brito has hit throughout his career, posting an OPS above .800 at every stop. That includes a .255/.366/.442 mark across nearly 800 Triple-A plate appearances over parts of three seasons. That’s an appealing profile for a lineup that had far too many wasted at-bats.

Shortstop prospect Angel Genao is the only other middle infielder on the 40-man roster. He’s a 21-year-old who has yet to play a Triple-A game. Genao is coming off a solid but unspectacular .259/.323/.359 showing over 77 Double-A contests. Scouting reports peg him as a potential everyday player, but he remains a work in progress on both sides of the ball. While he’ll hopefully be an upgrade over Rocchio and Arias down the line, there’s little to no chance that he’s on the Opening Day roster. A second half debut is plausible but not guaranteed.

AL Central Notes: Arias, Carpenter, Cannon

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Guardians shortstop Gabriel Arias had to be carted off the field with a left ankle sprain during today’s 7-0 loss to the Cardinals.  In the third inning, Arias jammed his left foot while sliding to try and gather a Masyn Winn grounder that went for a single, and Arias needed immediate treatment from the club’s training staff in the aftermath.  Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt told MLB.com’s Tim Stebbins and other reporters that Arias will undergo an MRI tomorrow, though the good news is that initial x-rays were negative.

More will be known about Arias’ status tomorrow, but it seems like a placement on the 10-day injured list is inevitable prior to the Guardians’ next game on Tuesday.  Now in his fourth MLB season, Arias began 2025 in a second base timeshare with Daniel Schneemann, and then assumed starting shortstop duties in mid-May.  Arias has +3 Outs Above Average and +3 Defensive Runs Saved over 424 1/3 innings at short this year, helping the Guards with his glove even if he is hitting only .231/.293/.369 over 281 plate appearances.  As Stebbins notes, former starting shortstop Brayan Rocchio will probably be called up from Triple-A to handle shortstop in Arias’ absence.

Here’s some more from around the AL Central…

  • Speaking of MRIs, Kerry Carpenter will also receive a scan tomorrow after he had to make an early exit from the Tigers’ 3-0 win over the Twins tonight.  Carpenter was removed from the game with right hamstring discomfort after hitting a triple in the fifth inning, though he told reporters (including MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery) that his hamstring started to act up earlier in the game when he was playing right field.  Detroit doesn’t play Monday so Carpenter will have a built-in day off to heal up, though a trip to the injured list might be a wise idea since Carpenter has been dealing with hamstring soreness for much of the season.  Carpenter has a 116 wRC+ and 16 home runs over 280 PA, but his .257/.285/.494 slash line reveals a severe dropoff in his on-base numbers, as Carpenter’s 2.5% walk rate is among the lowest in baseball.
  • The White Sox activated Jonathan Cannon from the 15-day injured list today, and the right-hander allowed a run on three hits and three walks (with four strikeouts) over three innings of a start in Chicago’s 5-2 over the Giants today.  Cannon missed just short of four weeks dealing with a lower back strain, and he now has a 4.59 ERA over 13 appearances (11 starts) and 66 2/3 innings this season.  A third-round pick for the Sox in the 2022 draft, Cannon made his Major League in 2024 and figures to be part of Chicago’s rotation for the rest of the season as the rebuilding White Sox figure out their future rotation.  Right-hander Wikelman Gonzalez was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move for Cannon’s activation.

Guardians Option Brayan Rocchio

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The Guardians announced that outfielder Will Brennan has been recalled from Triple-A Columbus. Infielder Brayan Rocchio has been sent the other way, optioned to Columbus as the corresponding move.

Rocchio, 24, heads to the minors for the first time since the 2023 season. He spent the entire 2024 campaign in the big leagues as Cleveland’s primary shortstop. He appeared in 143 games and stepped to the plate 442 times. His offense wasn’t great, as he hit just .206/.298/.316 for a 79 wRC+, indicating he was 21% below league average on the whole. He did steal 10 bases, but was also caught six times. His glovework was well regarded, as he racked up 11 Defensive Runs Saved and six Outs Above Average.

Put all together, FanGraphs considered him to be worth 1.1 wins above replacement on the season, with Baseball Reference a bit more generous at 1.9. That’s obviously not outstanding production but fine value for a guy making modest pay since he’s in his pre-arbitration years.

It was enough for him to open the 2025 season back in that role, but his performance has tanked and he has gradually ceded playing time to others. Through 102 plate appearances this year, Rocchio is hitting .165/.235/.198. His .208 batting average on balls in play is quite low but he’s also not hitting the ball with much authority. His average exit velocity, hard hit rate and barrel rate are no higher than the 11th percentile of qualified hitters, per Statcast. His 4.9% walk rate is less than half of last year’s 10% clip. The defensive metrics have also soured on him, with OAA having him at league par and DRS at -3.

In recent days and weeks, Gabriel Arias has been taking more of the shortstop time. He has a .264/.319/.416 line and 110 wRC+ on the year, with solid defense to boot. Presumably, he will take over as the regular shortstop now that Rocchio has been optioned. Arias and Daniel Schneemann had previously been sharing second base, so perhaps Schneeman will get more playing time at the keystone as he’s hitting .273/.356/.532 for a 154 wRC+ this year. Ángel Martínez and Will Wilson are on hand to step in to the middle infield, if needed, though Martínez is currently the club’s regular center fielder.

For Rocchio, instead of sitting on the big league bench, he can get some regular playing time with Columbus as he tries to get out of his recent funk. Getting his offense back to a more acceptable level could put him in position to return to the majors when an opportunity arises. He is still young and it’s certainly possible that there are better days ahead for him.

How long he spends on this optional assignment could impact his financial position in the future. He came into 2025 with one year and 37 days of service time. That put him on track to qualify for arbitration after 2026 and free agency after 2029, though those timelines will no longer be possible if he ends up spending several months down on the farm. He also has just one option season left, so he’ll be out of options next year if he spends at least 20 days in the minors this season.

Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images

Guardians Recall Angel Martínez For MLB Debut

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The Guardians announced that infielder Gabriel Arias has been placed on the family medical emergency list. In a corresponding move, the club has recalled infielder Angel Martínez, who will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game.

Martínez, 22, has been a notable prospect in the club’s system for some time. Baseball America ranked him as one of the top 30 prospects in the organization back in 2020 and each year since. In 2022, he hit .278/.378/.471 between High-A and Double-A for a 135 wRC+ while also stealing 12 bases.

The Guards selected him to their 40-man roster after that season, in order to prevent him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. He had a down year in 2023, slashing .251/.321/.394 between Double-A and Triple-A for a 92 wRC+. This season then got off to a rocky start, as he began the year on the injured list due to a right foot contusion and then suffered a left hamate fracture. He was reinstated from the IL at the end of May.

Despite the injury setbacks, he’s been in good form this year. He has taken 74 trips to the plate with Triple-A Columbus, walking more than he has struck out and hitting three home runs. His current batting line at that level is .333/.438/.550 this year.

Martínez has primarily played the three infield positions to the left of first base, with a brief showing in center field as well. The Guardians have José Ramírez, Andrés Giménez and Brayan Rocchio getting regular playing time at those infield spots with Daniel Schneemann bouncing around to multiple spots and Tyler Freeman getting semi-regular work in center. Arias has been serving in a bench role that Martínez should jump into.

Carlos Carrasco, Tyler Beede Make Guardians’ Opening Day Roster

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The Guardians have informed right-handers Carlos Carrasco and Tyler Beede that they’ve made the team’s Opening Day roster, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports. Both were in camp on minor league deals. Cleveland also informed catcher David Fry and infielders Gabriel Arias, Brayan Rocchio and Tyler Freeman that they’ll open the season on the big league roster. Carrasco had an opt-out clause in his contract today but that won’t end up coming into play.

Both Carrasco and Beede will need to be formally selected to the 40-man roster before Opening Day. The Guards will need to make a pair of corresponding moves to clear space. One can be opened by placing Trevor Stephan, who’s set to undergo Tommy John surgery, on the 60-day IL, but they’ll need a second spot. The other spot could depend on the status of outfielder Myles Straw, who has been placed on waivers.

The Guards came into camp with a rotation consisting of Shane Bieber, Triston McKenzie and last year’s rookies Tanner Bibee, Logan Allen and Gavin Williams. But it was reported last week that Williams will open the season on the injured list due to some right elbow discomfort, which opened a spot at the back end.

That spot will go to Carrasco, who Cleveland fans will be plenty familiar with. He pitched for the club from 2009 through 2020, before going to the Mets as part of the Francisco Lindor deal. He tossed 1,242 1/3 innings during his previous stint in Cleveland with a 3.77 earned run average.

His time in Queens has been a bit rockier. He has a 4.78 ERA over the past three years, including a mark of 6.80 last year. He had stints on the IL last year due to right elbow inflammation and a right pinky finger fracture, limiting him to 90 innings with uninspiring results. His previous Cleveland tenure resulted in a 25.5% strikeout rate and 6.3% walk rate but those numbers were at 15.8% and 9.1% with the Mets last year.

It’s a bit of a belated birthday present for Carrasco, who turned 37 yesterday. He and the Guardians will be hoping that a return to Cleveland can get him back to his old form.

Beede, 31 in May, was once a highly-touted youngster. He was selected 14th overall by the Giants back in 2014 and was considered to be a top 100 prospect as he climbed the minor league ladder. Unfortunately, he struggled in his first tastes of the majors and then required Tommy John surgery in 2020, wiping out that year and much of the next. He had a 5.14 ERA in 2022 and headed to Japan last year.

The move overseas seems to have got him back on track. He posted a 3.99 ERA for the Yomiuri Giants in 49 2/3 relief innings. That got him a minor league deal with the Guardians and he’s looked well in spring so far, with 10 2/3 innings pitched with a 1.69 ERA. That will get him back onto a big league roster via the Cleveland bullpen, though he is now out of options and will need to stick in the majors or else be made available to other clubs, either via waivers or a trade.

As for the middle infielders, Mandy Bell of MLB.com tweets that Rocchio is expected to get the bulk of shortstop reps with Arias in a utility role. The Guardians have a huge number of shortstop options, something that MLBTR’s Anthony Franco looked at last month. It’s likely a fluid situation that will evolve over time but Rocchio will get a crack at taking the job for now.

He made his major league debut last year and hit just .247/.279/.321, though in a small sample of 86 plate appearances. His Triple-A batting line was a much nicer .280/.367/.421 last year and he’ll hope to bring some of that production up to the big leagues this season.

The Guardians’ Shortstop Competition

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The Guardians are set to turn shortstop to a young infielder who hasn’t established himself at the MLB level. Last year’s Opening Day starter, Amed Rosario, was shipped off at the deadline. While he’s available in free agency, Cleveland isn’t likely to bring him back. They should have a competition between at least two fairly well-regarded young infielders in camp and during the early part of the upcoming season.

Let’s take a look at the possibilities:

Among returnees, no one played shortstop more frequently last season. He worked as the primary starter after Rosario was traded. Arias picked up 46 starts and logged 402 innings at the position overall. Defensive Runs Saved graded him as a neutral defender, while Statcast felt he was slightly better than average. Arias had a strong reputation as a defender during his time as a prospect, showcasing plus arm strength with the hands and lateral agility to stick at the position.

Arias would be a clear defensive upgrade on Rosario. The question is how much of an offensive impact he’d make. He hit just .210/.275/.352 over 345 plate appearances last season. MLB pitching exploited longstanding questions about his strike zone feel. Arias struck out nearly a third of the time. He chased pitches off the plate with regularity and swung through 19.5% of the offerings he saw. Of the 293 hitters who logged at least 300 plate appearances, only four swung and missed more frequently.

Despite the middling offensive output, Arias enters camp as the presumptive favorite. In a reader mailbag this week, MLB.com’s Mandy Bell suggested the Guardians were likely to give him the first opportunity to seize the job. Arias’ 2023 season was cut short by a non-displaced fracture in his right wrist when he was hit by a pitch in the final week of September. There’s no indication that he won’t be fully healthy for his age-24 season. Arias still has a minor league option, so the Guardians can send him to Triple-A, but it’d be a surprise if he isn’t on the Opening Day roster.

Rocchio, a switch-hitter, has been on the prospect radar for some time. Baseball America has included him among their Top 100 minor league talents four years running. Having recently turned 23, he seems likely to exhaust his rookie eligibility this year.

Cleveland gave Rocchio a brief MLB look last season. He was first promoted in April and bounced on and off the club on five separate occasions. Rocchio didn’t much make of an impact in his first 86 plate appearances. He didn’t hit a home run and limped to a .247/.279/.321 batting line. It wasn’t the most impressive showing, but it’s also probably not worth making a judgment off a limited sample spread across scattered views at big league pitching.

In 537 plate appearances for Triple-A Columbus, Rocchio turned in a solid .280/.367/.421 showing. He walked nearly as often as he struck out. Rocchio took free passes at an 11.2% clip while punching out just 12.3% of the time. The Guardians prioritize bat-to-ball skills, perhaps more than any other team. It’s fair to question how much power upside he possesses in a slight frame — he hit just seven homers in Triple-A — but he’s more of a prototypical Cleveland hitter than Arias is.

Baseball America remains bullish on his chances of carving out a productive career. He ranked as the #2 prospect in the Cleveland system and in the back half of their overall Top 100 this offseason. The outlet credits his advanced feel for hitting from both sides of the plate and gap power. He’s regarded as a solid defender with excellent baseball instincts. Rocchio has one option remaining.

Freeman also falls into the archetypal “Guardians hitter” mold. He makes a ton of contact with minimal power. The right-handed hitter appeared in 64 big league contests last season, posting a modest .242/.295/.366 batting line. He was far better in a 24-game look in Triple-A, where he hit .319/.457/.462 with almost as many walks (12.9%) as strikeouts (13.8%).

While he has a broadly similar offensive profile to Rocchio, he’s not as highly-regarded defensively. The Guardians used him more frequently at third base than shortstop last season, but he doesn’t have a path to consistent playing time at the hot corner unless José Ramírez suffers an injury. Freeman turns 25 in May and is entering his final option year, so this could be something of a make-or-break year for him to establish himself as a long-term piece in Cleveland.

It’d be a surprise if Tena’s in the mix for everyday shortstop work, at least early in the year. The left-handed hitter could play a multi-positional role off the bench and rotate through the position at times. Tena was called to the big leagues for the first time in early August. He only received 34 MLB plate appearances and struggled in that minuscule sample (.226/.294/.290). The 22-year-old (23 in March) spent most of last season at Double-A Akron. He posted a .260/.353/.370 line over 362 trips to the plate. Tena walked at a strong 11.3% clip but struck out in an alarming 28.7% of his plate appearances. He still has an option remaining and will probably start the year in Columbus.

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Cleveland also has a pair of upper minors middle infield prospects on the 40-man roster. Juan Brito, whom they acquired from Colorado in last year’s Nolan Jones trade, briefly reached Triple-A after posting an impressive .276/.373/.444 slash over 87 Double-A contests. Switch-hitting Angel Martínez combined for a .251/.321/.394 line between the top two minor league levels as a 21-year-old.

Brito and Martínez are probably each better suited for second base. It’s unlikely either breaks camp with Cleveland, but they’re both in close enough proximity to potentially factor into the middle infield competition during the ’24 season. If either plays his way to the second base job, the Guardians could consider sliding Andrés Giménez back to shortstop. Giménez played exclusively at the keystone last year but posted solid defensive metrics in his early-career work on the left side of the diamond.

AL Central Notes: Twins, Baez, Arias

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The Twins are the only AL Central team headed to the playoffs this year, and they’re set to do so with a handful of key players on the injured list. Fortunately, as noted by Bobby Nightengale of the Star Tribune, shortstop Carlos Correa, third baseman Royce Lewis, and outfielder Byron Buxton all participated in a simulated game this afternoon as they work their way back for the upcoming playoff run.

MLB.com’s Do-Hyoung Park adds more specific details on the timelines of each player: Correa is expected to return in time for the playoffs, and could possibly be activated before the end of the regular season. Lewis is currently able to hit but isn’t running yet, which figures to be a significant hurdle even if the 24-year-old youngster returns exclusively as a DH in the postseason. Buxton, meanwhile, is the most up in the air of the three, though it’s worth noting that the defensive phenom hasn’t been ruled out for a return to the outfield with the Twins this postseason.

Overall this year, Buxton has slashed just .207/.294/.438 in 85 games with the Twins while being exclusively relegated to DH. That’s significantly hampered his value, as Buxton is one of the best defenders in the sport when he’s healthy enough to take the field. Meanwhile, Correa’s bat has taken a major step back this year as well with a slash line of just .230/.312/.399 in 580 trips to the plate this year, though as the club’s everyday shortstop his return should nonetheless help stabilize the club’s infield situation. Overall, Lewis appears likely to impact the Twins the most of the trio this postseason in terms of offense, as he’s posted incredible numbers when healthy enough to take the field. In 239 trips to the plate this year, Lewis has slashed an incredible .309/.372/.548 while playing third base for the Twins.

More from the AL Central…

  • Despite Tigers shortstop Javier Baez being in the midst of what’s become the worst full season of his career, the 30-year-old veteran apparently hasn’t ruled out the possibility of opting out of the final four years and $98MM left on his contract with Detroit after the season comes to a close. In conversation with reporters, including Chris McCosky of The Detroit News, Baez said “I don’t know what’s going to happen, to be honest with you,” noting that after the season the sides would “sit down… and see what’s going to happen in the offseason.” Given that Baez has been a bottom-four qualified shortstop this year in terms of fWAR ahead of only Enrique Hernandez, Tim Anderson, and Amed Rosario, it would be something of a shock to see the veteran decide to test the open market. That said, he would join a dismal free agent shortstop class this offseason and still sports an elite glove at shortstop, as evidenced by his +8 Outs Above Average, which ranks in the 96th percentile per Baseball Savant.
  • Guardians infielder Gabriel Arias is done for the season. As noted by MLB.com, Arias was hit by a pitch over the weekend but returned to the lineup yesterday, only to feel pain after swinging the bat. Upon receiving an MRI, Arias was revealed to have sustained a non-displaced right wrist fracture. It’s a disappointing end to the season for Arias, who required surgery on that same wrist last offseason. The 23-year-old youngster has struggled at the plate in limited playing time over the past two seasons, with a combined .207/.282/.348 slash line in 402 trips to the plate since making is debut in 2022. Looking ahead to 2024, Arias figures to compete with fellow youngster Brayan Rocchio for the shortstop job in Cleveland next year, barring an external addition.

MLB Issues Suspensions Following Guardians/White Sox Brawl

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Per a league press release, Major League Baseball has suspended White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson for six games and Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez for three games following the benches-clearing brawl between the two teams over the weekend. The league also announced one-game suspensions for Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase, manager Terry Francona and third base coach Mike Sarbaugh. White Sox skipper Pedro Grifol was also suspended for one game. Guardians infielder Gabriel Arias and White Sox righty Michael Kopech were both fined an undisclosed amount.

Anderson and Ramirez are both appealing their suspensions, which will be held in abeyance until the appeals process has been completed. Clase will serve his suspension tonight, as will both managers. Sarbaugh will serve his suspension tomorrow.

The suspensions stem from a Saturday altercation on a slide at second base. Ramirez dove headfirst into the bag and felt Anderson applied a tag attempt to the head with too much force. Ramirez claimed after the game that his issues with Anderson predate Saturday’s contest, and he also alleged that Anderson was the aggressor and instigator of the fight (link via The Athletic). Anderson has not yet commented publicly.

Guardians Option Oscar Gonzalez To Triple-A

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After hitting only .192/.213/.288 over his first 75 plate appearances, Guardians outfielder Oscar Gonzalez has been optioned to Triple-A Columbus.  Infielder Tyler Freeman has been called up to replace Gonzalez on Cleveland’s active roster.

Gonzalez is the second prominent Guardians player to be optioned in the last three days, after Zach Plesac was also sent down to Columbus on Thursday.  Plesac was more of an established big leaguer than Gonzalez, yet both moves are indicative of how the Guards are trying to shake things up after an underwhelming 14-18 start to the season.

One of several young players who contributed to the Guardians’ success in 2022, Gonzalez made his MLB debut last season and hit .296/.327/.461 with 11 homers over 382 PA in his rookie season.  His most memorable moments included a pair of walkoff hits in the postseason — the 15th-inning home run that allowed the Guardians to eliminate the Rays in the Wild Card Series, and a walkoff single that led Cleveland to a win over the Yankees in Game 3 of the ALDS.

Despite this early success, Gonzalez displayed some weak points that have continued into 2023.  He has ranked near the bottom of the walk in both walk rate and chase rate in both seasons, even if his actual strikeout rate is above average.  Gonzalez’s hard-hit rate has also plummeted from a respectable 40.1% in 2022 to just 31% this year.

The Guardians entered the season using Gonzalez and Will Brennan in a right field platoon, with Brennan seeing the majority of at-bats as a left-handed hitter.  Manager Terry Francona told reporters (including Cleveland.com) that the team’s desire to use Gonzalez on a more regular basis contributed to the decision to send him to Triple-A.

“We might be doing Oscar right now a disservice by playing him sparingly….Last time we called him up, he had a lot of at-bats under his belt and felt really good about himself.  So we’re going to hopefully get him going again, as opposed to playing him every so often,” Francona said.

Freeman might be an example of this very tactic, as the former top-100 prospect (who also made his MLB debut in 2022) returns to the majors on the strength of a hot streak with Columbus.  The Guardians called Freeman up for two games in April, but Freeman has otherwise spent the season at Triple-A, and is batting .329/.468/.482 over 109 PA with the Clippers.

It remains to be seen where Freeman will fit into Cleveland’s lineup or how often he’ll play, but Gabriel Arias is notably getting the start in right field today for the Guardians against the Twins (and right-handed starter Sonny Gray).  Arias is yet another highly-touted prospect from the Guardians’ farm system, but he hasn’t shown much over an even 100 plate appearances at the big league level.  Only 43 of those PA have come this season, so Arias and Freeman might get some looks as part of the right field platoon even though both are infielders by trade.  Arias has made a handful of appearances as a left fielder during his career but today marks his pro debut in right field.

Guardians Notes: Freeman, Arias, Extensions, Mikolajchak

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The Guardians announced Tuesday that they’ve optioned infield prospect Tyler Freeman to Triple-A Columbus. The former No. 71 overall pick and top-100 prospect made his big league debut last season but hit just .247/.314/.286 through his first 86 trips to the plate. That came on the heels of solid but still diminished production in his first run at Triple-A, where he slashed .279/.371/.364 on the season.

Freeman fits the Guardians contact-first archetype, drawing praise for a 60- or 70-grade hit tool on most scouting reports and fanning in just 9.3% of his Triple-A plate appearances to date. However, he’s also lacking in power and faced an uphill battle to make a roster where Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez have the middle infield locked down.

Add in a disappointing .147/.231/.147 showing in 39 plate appearances this spring, and the decision to option Freeman doesn’t come as much of a surprise. He’ll get another run through the Triple-A level and could still factor into the Cleveland infield before long; Rosario is a free agent following the season, though Freeman will have to contend with fellow prospects Gabriel Arias, Brayan Rocchio and Jose Tena for time in the Guards’ infield mix.

For now, with Arias remaining in camp, it appears he has the inside track on winning a utility job to begin the season. The 23-year-old is seen as a true option at shortstop but has more swing-and-miss issues than most Guardians hitters and hasn’t drawn walks at a particularly high clip in the minors. Arias slashed .240/.310/.406 in Triple-A last season but stumbled with a .191/.321/.319 showing in a tiny sample of 57 big league plate appearances during last summer’s debut. He’s had a big spring showing (.350/.395/.425, 43 plate appearances), and given the strength of his glove, he’s a natural candidate to fill a utility role in the infield, where he can sub in at multiple positions.

While sorting out the bench is a key process for Cleveland decision-makers this spring, the amount of emphasis on who breaks camp with the team can often be overstated. In all likelihood, Freeman will get his share of chances this season, as will Arias, Richie Palacios and others. Injuries are inevitable, and being left off the Opening Day roster is no more a signal that a player will spend all season in the minors than making the Opening Day squad is a free ticket to a full year of service time.

A greater priority for the front office could be trying to lock down some long-term deals with key young players. Jason Lloyd of The Athletic asked president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti about this very topic recently, and while Antonetti obviously wouldn’t delve into specifics, he somewhat “coyly” expressed optimism about getting at least one such contract worked out. Antonetti’s comments don’t necessarily mean a deal is likely, but they’re at least an ostensible acknowledgement that the club has been having conversations with some of its young core. Lloyd speculatively suggests that left fielder Steven Kwan, right-hander Triston McKenzie and Gimenez are the likeliest candidates for such a deal, but it’s not clear whether substantive negotiations have occurred with any of those three, specifically.

That said, extensions for the Guardians were a huge point of emphasis this time last season. Beyond locking up superstar Jose Ramirez on a long-term deal that could keep him in Cleveland for the majority of his career, Antonetti & Co. worked out five-year deals with center fielder Myles Straw and closer Emmanuel Clase in the days leading up to Opening Day 2022.

There’s also one unfortunate health update out of Guardians camp this morning. Manager Terry Francona revealed this morning that right-handed relief prospect Nick Mikolajchak has been diagnosed with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow (Twitter link via Mandy Bell of MLB.com). Francona didn’t provide a specific grade of strain or a treatment plan, as the team is still gathering information and determining the next steps for the 25-year-old righty.

Mikolajchak had a huge 2021 season in Double-A, where he pitched to a 3.18 ERA with a gaudy 35.8% strikeout rate against a 5.7% walk rate. FanGraphs’  Eric Longenhagen noted this spring that a late-2021 shoulder injury might’ve impacted Mikolajchak in 2022, when his velocity was down and his walk rate was up — though he still pitched to a sharp 3.04 ERA in his first stint at the Triple-A level. Francona offered praise for the 2019 eleventh-rounder’s spring performance, when he posted 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball with six hits, one walk and four strikeouts.

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