It didn’t take very long for the Cleveland Guardians to erase some of the negative perceptions about their potential for the 2026 season. All it took was a historic performance by Chase DeLauter for their ceiling to be raised in less than a week.
With their offense seen as their primary drawback, DeLauter’s home run outburst has created much more optimism about the lineup’s potential. If he can be the missing piece the Guardians have been searching for, they could defy almost every dire preseason prediction.
Entering the first full week of the campaign, the Guardians made a notable move in Bleacher Report’s power rankings, moving up three spots to No. 13.
“Rookie outfielder Chase DeLauter had one of the loudest opening weekends of any player, going 6-for-17 with four home runs over his first four regular-season games after debuting in the postseason last year. The 24-year-old has transformative upside for a Guardians team that has struggled to find consistent offensive production in recent years,” Joel Reuter wrote.
It should be noted that no one besides DeLauter was producing at a necessary level, even though the Guardians managed to split their opening four-game series on the road against the Seattle Mariners. Cleveland had a team batting average of below .200, was almost no-hit in the series finale, and was outscored 13-1 in the two losses.
None of that should take away from the impact DeLauter has had to begin his rookie season. With two home runs on Opening Day and one each in the following two games, he has shown what the Guardians are capable of if the rest of their hitters come around.
Of course, superstar third baseman Jose Ramirez won’t carry his current .143 batting average for long, and much bigger things are expected from first baseman Kyle Manzardo and catcher Bo Naylor, who have combined for three singles in the first five games. Plus, if middle infielders Gabriel Arias and Brayan Rocchio can’t get their averages above .200, top prospect Travis Bazzana is just waiting for the call in Triple-A.
The starting pitchers will have to do better as well, excluding Parker Messick’s excellent outing in the series-opening win against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Fortunately, Tanner Bibee is able to take his next turn in the rotation on Tuesday after experiencing shoulder discomfort in the season opener.
Many projections had the Guardians falling well short of the playoffs this season, but with another excellent week, they could be a top 10 team in no time.
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