The Cleveland Guardians set their goals and their plan for the 2025 MLB season.
It seemed to work at first, but there were some glaring needs.
There have always been concerns about the outfield and the offense, and so far, the team has done little to address those shortcomings.
Zack Meisel of The Athletic recently called out the front office for failing to adjust along the way this season.
“They set a plan, and they stick to it. And the plan was to build up Chase DeLauter until he was playing five times a week, four to five days in a row. They preferred to do it in the minor leagues because if he didn’t bounce back, they could just sit him without screwing up the major league plan for everybody else. That’s the issue I have with this team. You came into this season already with a deficient lineup, and you’ve done nothing to fix it until this point. That’s why they’re in a tough spot,” Meisel said, via 92.3 The Fan.
⚾"They set a plan and they stick to it… You came into this season with an already deficient lineup and did nothing to fix it."@ZackMeisel on @KenCarmanShow says the #Guardians front office has been "stubborn" with calling up prospects⬇️
🔊: https://t.co/AgsOts41qC pic.twitter.com/lhyCHYnB58
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) July 23, 2025
DeLauter is a potential superstar, and it makes sense that the outfielder is a focal point of the organization’s plan because he’s the type of unique talent that could change everything for this team.
Nevertheless, as good as he is, he’s also injury-prone, and the team has failed to adapt or adjust its plans after watching him sustain yet another setback.
Of course, Meisel doesn’t mean the organization should give up on DeLauter.
But when what it projected to happen didn’t happen, perhaps it could’ve pivoted.
Not many MLB teams operate this way, and being reactive isn’t the best way to address issues, either.
Perhaps the Guardians should find some middle ground between sticking to their plan and doing something to address immediate concerns that appeared along the way, especially with the trade deadline looming.
NEXT: Guardians Reportedly Received Calls For 3 Key Players
