Young Guardians Slugger Lands Among Players With Best Debuts

The Cleveland Guardians are off to a 1-0 start in the young 2026 season, thanks to their 6-4 win over the Seattle Mariners on Thursday night.

One of the biggest and most important takeaways of the game is that the Guardians appear to have solved, at long last, the second spot in the lineup, at least against right-handers.

Rookie Chase DeLauter had a dream debut on Thursday, hitting two long homers and going 3-for-5 with three runs scored and a couple of RBI. He was a constant threat to the Mariners’ pitching, and his two round-trippers ended up being the difference in the ballgame.

On a day in which several players made their MLB debuts or played their first game with a new team, DeLauter stood out. The league’s official site had nothing but nice things to say about him.

“DeLauter made his MLB debut in last year’s Wild Card Series for the Guardians, but he made his regular-season debut on Thursday. Penciled in as the No. 2 hitter between Steven Kwan and José Ramírez, DeLauter smashed a solo home run in his first career plate appearance, putting the Guards ahead with an early 1-0 lead. He homered yet again in the ninth inning, becoming the fourth Cleveland player with multiple home runs on Opening Day,” MLB.com wrote.

DeLauter had played a couple of games in the Wild Card round last year, but Thursday marked his official, regular-season debut. And it was one for the ages.

In a surprising turn of events, manager Stephen Vogt didn’t take him out of the game in the seventh inning when the M’s brought in left-hander Gabe Speier. DeLauter responded to the vote of confidence with a first-pitch single to left field that preceded a two-run double by Jose Ramirez that gave the Guardians a 5-3 lead at the time.

When Seattle closed the gap to just one run, DeLauter hit his second home run of the night, a majestic 422-feet moonshot, in the top of the ninth. He gave the Mariners a headache and did damage against three different pitchers.

It was an unforgettable debut for DeLauter, who is firmly entrenched as the Guardians’ two-hole hitter for the foreseeable future and boasts AL Rookie of the Year potential if he finally stays healthy.