The Cleveland Guardians have a handful of young exciting outfielders competing for playing time alongside Steven Kwan. George Valera is firmly in that mix and has gotten off to a strong start in Spring Training with an .833 OPS, but he has recently encountered a speed bump in his quest to win a starting role.
Valera recently strained his calf, which alarmed the fans, given the fact that he has had a lot of injuries throughout his career up to this point. The 25-year-old has struggled to stay on the field throughout the minors, and more details have emerged about his injury, which should help fans feel a bit better.
Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com recently wrote about Valera and noted that he should be out for at least a few days, but stopped short of suggesting this will be a long-term injury. He said the injury isn’t serious, but the team still wants to be careful with him, given his history.
“George Valera will be out for at least a few days as he deals with a mild left calf strain. Valera is in position to make the opening-day roster. He is hitting .292 (7-for-24) this spring with a homer and four RBI. The injury doesn’t appear to be serious. The Guardians want to be careful with Valera, who has dealt with a lot of injuries in his career. He does have a minor league option but the Guardians want to see what the 25-year-old can do in the majors,” Pluto wrote.
Valera came up late last season and provided a spark to help the team win the AL Central again. He even popped a homer in the playoffs and gave the fans a glimpse into what could hopefully be a long and productive future with him at the heart of the order.
There are roughly two weeks left until the regular season begins, so it’s disappointing that Valera is going to miss out on valuable time he could have used to further establish himself as a starter. Fellow high-upside and injury-prone prospect Chase DeLauter is in a similar boat and hoping for a breakout season if he can stay healthy as well, which he is at the moment.
Both these young lefties can turn into pivotal members of this lineup for the next decade. That path starts in 2026, and hopefully Valera can rest that calf up and be back before Opening Day.
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