GOODYEAR, Ariz. — On the surface, there doesn’t appear to be much to sort out with the Guardians’ eventual Opening Day roster. A couple of bench spots here, a bullpen spot there.
What does need to be determined, though, is a bit tricky to decode. Cleveland’s 40-man roster is stuffed to capacity, and given the youth of those on board, the club doesn’t have much flexibility. That makes the pieces somewhat difficult to fit together.
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With a month until the team heads to Seattle to begin the 2023 campaign, let’s examine how the 26-man roster might take shape.
Catcher (2)
Mike Zunino, Cam Gallagher
Others in camp: Bo Naylor, Bryan Lavastida, Meibrys Viloria, Zack Collins, David Fry
Nothing has changed here. Naylor, a safe bet to start the season at Triple-A Columbus, and Viloria will step away for the World Baseball Classic in the coming days. Fry will see more time at catcher during their absence. Manager Terry Francona specifically mentioned that Gallagher and Viloria had productive one-on-one meetings as camp opened. For either to head to Seattle as part of the Opening Day roster, the Guardians would have to clear a 40-man spot. Would they carry four catchers on the 40-man roster (Zunino, Naylor, Lavastida and, say, Gallagher)? That would be more feasible if they didn’t have so many middle-infield prospects on the list.
Infielders (6)
Josh Bell, Josh Naylor, Andrés Giménez, Amed Rosario, José Ramírez, Gabriel Arias
Others in camp: Tyler Freeman, Brayan Rocchio, Angel Martinez, Juan Brito, Jhonkensy Noel, Jose Tena, Micah Pries
Arias and Freeman have started working in the outfield on occasion. Freeman said he has never played the outfield, but he’s been learning from new staff assistant J.T. Maguire and has consulted Myles Straw for advice. Arias appeared in seven games in left field at Triple A last season, so Francona said he’s ahead of Freeman in terms of outfield readiness. Neither player has much left to prove in Columbus, but there’s limited opportunity for one utility infielder, let alone two, given how rarely Ramírez, Rosario and Giménez rest.
Noel and Pries will work at first base and the corner outfield spots this spring. Noel previously played third base in the minors.
Outfielders (5)
Steven Kwan, Myles Straw, Oscar Gonzalez, Will Brennan, Roman Quinn
Others in camp: Richie Palacios, George Valera
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OK, let’s get this out of the way first: Quinn, in camp as a non-roster invitee, was included in this 26-man roster before he launched two home runs on Monday. Really, the home runs have nothing to do with his nomination. He has eight home runs in 599 plate appearances as a big leaguer. He owns a career .651 OPS. Where Quinn can help the club, however, is with his legs and his glove. He could offer value off the bench, especially with the new rules in place. He said the bigger bags are “for the base stealer’s advantage,” and he would know. He used them in the minors last year and has stolen 43 bases in 54 chances in his major-league career.
“His skill set, he can play all three outfield positions really well and he can really run,” Francona said. “He’s very interesting.”
Quinn has never totaled more than 150 plate appearances in a season. The Guardians wouldn’t be tempted to squeeze him into the starting lineup on a regular basis.
Brennan, on the other hand, is ready for a regular opportunity. But until one of the starters — Kwan, Straw and Gonzalez — either falters or lands on the injured list, that might not be possible. So, the question becomes, is it more beneficial for Brennan to play daily in Columbus until an opportunity arises, or play a couple of times a week in the majors? And is Brennan or Palacios better suited for that part-time role?
The Guardians can carry either two extra infielders plus one extra outfielder, or vice versa. They’ll likely be choosing three bench players out of the quintet of Arias, Freeman, Palacios, Brennan and Quinn. Palacios has a 15-hour flight to Taiwan on Wednesday to participate in the WBC with Team Netherlands.
"Like I said … We hungry."
Roman Quinn has 3 homers in 5 at bats this spring. 👀#CLESpring pic.twitter.com/sCUnrfV4lw
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) February 27, 2023
Starting pitchers (5)
Shane Bieber, Triston McKenzie, Cal Quantrill, Aaron Civale, Zach Plesac
Others in camp: Logan Allen, Joey Cantillo, Konnor Pilkington, Peyton Battenfield, Xzavion Curry, Hunter Gaddis
There’s not much mystery here … for now. The five obvious candidates are, unsurprisingly, starting the first five days of the Cactus League season. What’s worth monitoring is how the rest of the group shakes out. If someone struggles or goes on the injured list, which starter receives the first promotion to the majors?
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Pilkington, Curry and Gaddis all debuted last season. Battenfield almost did. Allen and Cantillo might have the highest ceilings of the bunch, but Allen needs to prove his rough stretch in Columbus last summer was a mirage. Cleveland’s player development staff challenged him last fall to take the next step from Top 100 prospect to impact big leaguer. Cantillo, who added several ticks to his fastball last year, needs to prove he can stay healthy; he has logged only 73 2/3 innings the past two years. He said he focused on shoulder strengthening exercises over the offseason (when he wasn’t surfing in Oahu, of course).
Relievers (8)
Emmanuel Clase, James Karinchak, Trevor Stephan, Sam Hentges, Enyel De Los Santos, Nick Sandlin, Eli Morgan, Tim Herrin
Others in camp: Cody Morris, Jason Bilous, Caleb Baragar, Caleb Simpson, Phillip Diehl, Michael Kelly, Dusten Knight, Nick Mikolajchak, Andrew Misiaszek, Luis Oviedo, Cade Smith, Touki Toussaint
There doesn’t seem to be an obvious favorite for the final spot, so close your eyes and point to a name.
Herrin has intriguing stuff, including a fastball that sits in the mid-90s, and he’d equip the club with a second lefty in the bullpen. So, we’ll tab him for now. But it would be no surprise if he starts the season in Columbus, where he had mixed results in the latter part of last season. Herrin and Bilous are the only contenders on the 40-man roster, aside from Morris, who is recovering from a lat injury. (Morris has been playing catch up to 90 feet.) The Guardians claimed Bilous off waivers from the White Sox earlier this month.
Don’t bother scouring the relievers’ ERAs or other surface-level numbers when attempting to solve the bullpen competition riddle. It’s more about how sharp a pitcher’s stuff looks, how they’re commanding their pitches, and hitters’ reactions to what they’re throwing. The decisions also hinge on whether certain non-roster relievers are willing to be assigned to Triple A, what role the team is envisioning for the eighth reliever, and the composition of the 40-man roster. This battle could take some time to come into focus.
(Top photo of Roman Quinn: Sam Greene / The Cincinnati Enquirer via USA Today Network)
