Cleveland Guardians infielders Brayan Rocchio and Gabriel Arias are both capable of playing second base and shortstop. And, heading into the season, both were coming off long stretches of offensive mediocrity.
That’s why, before the 2026 regular season started, the overall consensus was that both players would be fighting for a place in the team’s long-term plans, knowing that Travis Bazzana would come up and take over second base at some point in the first half.
After a little over a month of play, it’s clear who has won his spot and who is on the outside looking in, using performance and health as tiebreakers.
“Rocchio started this season at second base but moved back to shortstop when Arias strained his left hamstring and went on the 15-day injured list. Since moving back to his natural position, Rocchio is hitting .319 (22 for 69) with two homers, 13 RBI and a .800 OPS. Rocchio doesn’t have Arias’ arm, but he has everything else needed to play shortstop,” Guardians insider Paul Hoynes said.
Arias started the season ice-cold. Then, when he was starting to get hot, he strained his hamstring, which is why the organization decided to call up Juan Brito. Arias’ 87 wRC+ proves that, while he was making progress, he had been a liability to that point.
The Brito experiment failed, too, as he put up a poor 44 wRC+ in 56 plate appearances. That’s when the team decided not to lose any more chances and call up Bazzana.
Arias is still not healthy, but once he returns, Cleveland will need to make a decision because he won’t have an everyday role barring an injury. The team is deploying the irreplaceable Jose Ramirez at third, Rocchio at short, and Bazzana at second.
Rocchio has been a changed man since returning from a long stint in the minor leagues last summer. It looks like he got everything in place and started realizing his potential.
“Plus, since returning from Columbus last year, he’s been an effective hitter on a team that needs as much offense as it can get. When Vogt lets a starting pitcher go one more inning than some would like, he says, ‘He earned that inning.’ Well, the one thing that’s clear in Cleveland’s middle infield is that Rocchio has earned the right to stay at shortstop no matter what the coming weeks will bring,” Hoynes wrote.
Before Friday’s games, Rocchio is slashing a solid .283/.360/.404 with three home runs, 17 RBI, two steals, and a 119 wRC+. He is still playing a fantastic shortstop, too, as his five Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) and three Outs Above Average (OAA) suggest.
Overall, Rocchio has become an asset to the Guardians. There’s no way he loses his spot now.
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