The Cleveland Guardians, at the moment, do not have a set starter at second base.
They traded away multiple Gold Glove award winner Andrés Giménez in December.
Now, unless there is a move for a clear upgrade, several minor leaguers and young players will vie for that position.
One of them is prospect Juan Brito, who will compete with Angel Martinez, Daniel Schneemann, Gabriel Arias and others for the right to be called the Guardians starting second baseman.
Brito posted a 113 wRC+ in Triple-A, spending the entire 2024 campaign there and accumulating some nice totals.
He showed off his pop by hitting 61 extra-base hits: 40 doubles and 21 round-trippers.
By doing so, he joined an exclusive club in recent franchise history.
“Cleveland #Guardians minor league players with (60+ XBH) in a single season since 2000. Jared Goedert (2010) 65, Ryan Mulhern (2005) 64, Jason Cooper (2003) 64, Anthony Gallas (2014) 63, Anthony Santander (2016) 62, Matt McBride (2009) 62, Matt Whitney (2007) 62, Victor Martinez (2002) 62, Juan Brito (2024) 61, Russ Canzler (2012) 61, Jhonny Peralta (2004) 61, Jhonkensy Noel (2022) 60, Daniel Johnson (2019) 60, Kai’ Tom (2019) 60, Gio Urshela (2014) 60, Brad Snyder (2005) 60,” Guardians Prospective posted on X.
Cleveland #Guardians minor league players with (60+ XBH) in a single season since 2000.
Jared Goedert (2010) 65
Ryan Mulhern (2005) 64
Jason Cooper (2003) 64
Anthony Gallas (2014) 63
Anthony Santander (2016) 62
Matt McBride (2009) 62
Matt Whitney (2007) 62
Victor Martinez (2002)…— Guardians Prospective (@CleGuardPro) January 4, 2025
Cleveland certainly hopes Brito turns out to be closer to Martinez, Peralta, Santander or Urshela and has a nice MLB career.
The pop is certainly there, even though it’s more gap than over the fence power.
He should be a 15-20 homer player when fully developed.
The best thing about his offensive profile, however, is his excellent on-base skills.
He walked at a 13.5 percent clip last year in Triple-A, and his OBP was a steady .365.
He also added 13 stolen bases, so he has some speed, too.
The overall package is very enticing: Brito doesn’t have any fantastic, elite tools, but is very consistent across the board and should be a fine regular if given the chance.
NEXT: Guardians Pitching Prospects Impressed In Run Prevention And Bat-Missing Stats Last Year
