The Cleveland Guardians’ struggles since the All-Star break, they’ve gone 9-18, makes it pretty clear to most fans that it is time to look toward 2027 (or maybe 2028). We say that because it would not be a shock if labor issues caused Major League Baseball not to be played next year.
It remains to be seen how long the organization continues to look at salvaging this season, because the players and Steven Vogt will want to keep trying to win games until they are mathematically eliminated, which with the three wild card spots available, may not occur until mid-September.
However, among those who don’t kid themselves on a daily basis, it is time to look towards the next season, and what moves should be made with that in mind.
The Guardians made a move yesterday, bringing back southpaw Logan Allen, most likely because the relief corps has been used a lot and the pitcher he replaced, Franco Aleman, pitched in the last two games and wouldn’t have been available.
One thing we would like to see is playing Angel Genao at shortstop. The 22-year-old switch-hitter looks very mature at the plate, starting his big-league career with a four hit game, and overall has gone 10 for 34 with a home run and just three strikeouts to date. He uses the whole field, which is a good sign, but it is time for him to get an extended look at his natural position.
We like Brayan Rocchio, and we understand that this move is not fair to him, but that’s baseball. Does Rocchio fit in as a utility man next year or can he be used as trade bait? He’s shown he’s more than capable defensively, but he’s blocked at second base unless Travis Bazzana changes positions.
And that might be on the table. We wouldn’t be shocked if the former first overall draft pick went back to the minors where a transition might be started. Since June 1st, Bazzana has hit just .208 with 60 strikeouts in 256 plate appearances. He seems very susceptible to the high fastball. He just can’t lay off.
Somehow, the Guardians need to get another look at Cooper Ingle, who is terrorizing the International League with an OPS of 999. Yes, we know what he looked like in his brief time with the big club, but he only had 24 plate appearances.
At AAA, he’s batting .306 with 18 homers and has drawn 63 walks. Where to play him might be an issue because the organization obviously doesn’t view him as a catcher, and he struggled in LF in the bigs. However, he could get some at bats at DH, since the Guardians seem to need guys who can hit.
It’s also probably time to see more of Daniel Espino, who has had control issues at AAA (20 walks in 30 innings), but he’s stuck out 39 hitters and has electric stuff. We would also bring Aleman back as soon as possible.
The Allen recall also made us think that Parker Messick’s innings should be limited the rest of the way. He’s already pitched more innings than ever in his career, and with the team falling out of it, there is no reason to overextend him.
These are just a couple of things to do as the season winds down. And if the Guardians go on a winning streak, that’s great. We just don’t see that taking place.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 
I would think the Bazzana move would be more of a thing they try during the off season and next spring training, whenever that happens. They really do need to get Ingle back here and figure out what to do with him. Even if they are going use him as trade bait, because they can’t figure out what to do with him. He should have more value, if he shows he can hit ML pitching. When I look at the roster and positions, I see question marks in LF & CF to start. Kwan is of course the biggest puzzle piece. Can they possibly extend him or do they trade him? If they keep him, one of the two spots is filled. Then you have the SS-2B question. Bazzana has a starting job at either 2B or OF. Being the first pick carries too much weight that after one season they are moving away from him. We all know that is not happening. So what you do with Genao and Rocchio depends on what happens with Bazzana. 1B you assume that Ralph will be here next year, but what are they going to do with Manzardo? Are they really giving up on him one year after he had a pretty good season? How much of his regression this year can be attributed to the hitting coaches? Is that even fair to think they have something to do with it? There are a lot of moving parts and pieces that they need to solve. I will be curious to see what they decide to do. As always I enjoy reading your thoughts.