The Cleveland Guardians had their spring training opener on Saturday, against the Cincinnati Reds in Goodyear Ballpark.
Unfortunately, they ended up taking a 6-3 loss.
But that’s the beauty of spring baseball: the results aren’t as important as they are in the regular season.
In exhibition games, it’s more about the box scores and player performances rather than wins and losses.
And in this case, the Guardians are surely excited to see Lane Thomas homering off a right-handed pitcher.
Lane Thomas picking up where he left off in October!#GuardsSpring pic.twitter.com/JSbMaFGBnn
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) February 22, 2025
In the first inning and against a talented, hard-throwing MLB hurler in Hunter Greene, Thomas turned on a pitch and sent it to the stands with a runner on.
It’s a noteworthy development because Thomas is notoriously better against southpaws and not so effective vs. righties.
In 2024 between the Washington Nationals and the Guardians, he had a 146 wRC+ against lefties and a mediocre 82 mark against righties.
Thomas will, barring an unlikely extension, hit the free agent market after the World Series.
He was a huge factor in Cleveland’s Division Series victory against the Detroit Tigers last year and sparked the epic win in Game 3 of the League Championship Series against the New York Yankees with a late double.
Even if his future in Cleveland is in question, he is very much motivated to have a nice season because his next contract is on the line.
In other Guardians-related developments, Triston McKenzie’s fastball showed more zip than last season, as he allowed one run in two innings during Saturday’s outing.
Logan Allen had the exact same stat line in relief.
Among batters, shortstop Brayan Rocchio went 3-for-3 with two doubles.
The Guardians take the field on Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels at 4:05 pm ET.
NEXT: Triston McKenzie Gets Honest About Missing 2024 Playoffs
