The Cleveland Guardians have hit an unfortunate skid of late and are aiming to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Minnesota Twins on Thursday that would extend their losing streak to five games and drop them into a tie with the Twins for second place in the AL Central.
The injuries and underperformance on offense are the main reasons why Cleveland has squandered its division lead, but there are still plenty of exciting developments that have come out of the first half of this season. One of those is the performance of shortstop Brayan Rocchio, who has completely changed his trajectory within this organization and recently got a ton of praise from former Guardian Carlos Baerga.
During a recent episode of The Daily Guards, Baerga gave Rocchio credit for how much he has stepped up this season both in the field and at the dish. He easily could have gotten lost amidst all the intriguing young talent coming up from the minors, but he has solidified himself as a young stalwart for this team for many years to come with his massive improvement in 2026.
“Rocchio, this year, he stepped up another level. He’s been special with the glove, with the bat. He keeps improving, and he’s going to keep improving because he’s going to know the league, too. He’s been special,” Baerga said.
.@baerga99 believes Brayan Rocchio was snubbed from the All Star team. #GuardsBall
Do you agree with Carlos?
"He's been special." pic.twitter.com/RrFdqOEi1I
— Cleveland Guardians on SI (@GuardsOnSI) July 9, 2026
Rocchio embodies everything this organization is about and there is no telling where the team would be without him at this point of the season. He has been a steadying force as Jose Ramirez, Chase DeLauter, and Angel Martinez have all missed weeks of action while others like Steven Kwan, Bo Naylor, and Rhys Hoskins have seen their offensive production fall off a cliff.
If you had told most Guardians fans last season that at the midway point of 2026, Rocchio would either be traded or sent down in place of one of the other up-and-coming prospects, many would have believed you. He posted a -0.2 WAR last season and a .630 OPS in 115 games, but in just 90 games this year, he has already set career highs in hits and steals while being on pace to shatter all his previous career highs in other categories.
He is on pace to put up close to five WAR at 25 years old, which would make him undoubtedly one of the league’s most valuable shortstops. It’s a shame he didn’t make the All-Star team, but if he keeps improving like this, he’ll earn plenty of those accolades in the coming years.
NEXT: Guardians Avoid Sweep And Snap Four-Game Losing Streak
