The Cleveland Guardians are set at catcher, with Bo Naylor being the starter and Austin Hedges backing him up.
Carlos Santana will man first base, where he is an asset with the glove and remains an above-average bat.
Second base is a mystery and will involve a position battle in spring training, featuring Juan Brito, Angel Martinez, Gabriel Arias, Daniel Schneemann, and others.
Brayan Rocchio and Jose Ramirez will complete the infield.
Steven Kwan and Lane Thomas, barring any surprises, will be at left and center field, respectively.
Kyle Manzardo will likely be the designated hitter most days, at least against righties.
What about right field?
Guardians insider Mandy Bell suggested this week that there could be a rotation until someone stands out.
“So, this could be a rotating spot. It seems safe to assume that it will start with Will Brennan and Jhonkensy Noel again. The Guardians turned to that platoon for most of the second half of last season. But Brennan hasn’t been able to hit the same stride that he did when he first came up to the Majors in 2022. If he can’t see consistent success, maybe the Guardians move to a different option,” she said.
About Noel, Bell highlighted his huge power but noted he will need to make adjustments in order to succeed and run away with the job.
“He’ll need to be more selective at the plate and lay off the pitches that made him chase in ’24,” she wrote.
Noel did hit 13 homers in just 67 games, but his 46.9 percent O-Swing% (percentage of swings on pitches outside of the strike zone) ranked as the fifth-worst mark in the league according to Sports Info Solutions.
If Noel can stop chasing bad pitches, the sky is the limit for him.
One of those two will likely start at right field until Chase DeLauter is ready.
Some say he is ready now, while others believe he needs a couple of months in Triple-A given all the time he has missed.
He is the future of the Guardians at the position, though.
NEXT: Guardians Star Pitcher Ramps Things Up Ahead Of Spring Training
