Thursday will mark the first time in more than a decade that the Guardians open the regular season without legendary manager Terry Francona. While some familiar faces remain, Ideastream Public Media's sports commentator Terry Pluto talked about a number of questions facing new manager Stephen Vogt.
"You have a manager that was here for 10 years and had two losing records and six trips to the playoffs, and during that time they never were bad," Pluto said. "But it is a new team with a new manager, Steven Vogt. This is his first year as a manager. He's only two years away from playing. I have no clue how he's going to do."
Pluto said his top concern for the team is the bullpen.
"Because the last few years, Emmanuel Clase pitched in more games and more save situations than anybody else. And I think it began to wear him down. And some of the guys that they were counting on to pitch innings before Clase are hurt," he said.
James Karinchak is still rehabbing a shoulder injury and Trevor Stephan is out for the season to undergo elbow surgery.
"So, when you look at the bullpen, you're talking about — other than a veteran pitcher named (Scott) Barlow — you're talking about players such as Tim Herron ... Hunter Gaddis (and) Eli Morgan. I did not see anything here that gives me optimism about the bullpen," Pluto said.
"Now, they are in a bad division. If the starting pitching holds up and it could, and if they could find the bullpen to be above average, then they could be a surprise team."Terry Pluto
The Guardians brought back a familiar face in pitcher Carlos Carrasco.
"If he stays healthy, he can help them. And he pitched really well in spring training. He's going to open as the fifth starter because one of their young phenoms, Gavin Williams, has a bit of an arm problem. It's supposed to not be serious. And then they're going to put (Carrasco) in the bullpen. And maybe Carlos can help that bullpen situation," Pluto said.
As for the rest of the starting pitching staff, star Shane Bieber is back in the rotation.
"Two things about Bieber. Number one, he worked on strengthening his arm in the offseason. I'm always a little dubious with that. You hear 'Oh he's going to add some miles to his fastball,' or whatever. He did. He got his arm in good shape, but he's going to be a free agent at the end of the year, so it's almost like the clock's ticking. When will they trade him?" said Pluto.
The rest of the rotation includes Triston McKenzie, Gavin Williams, Logan Allen and Tanner Bibee, who Pluto believes is the next Bieber.
The Guardians also return first baseman Josh Naylor, second baseman Andres Gimenez, third baseman Jose Ramirez, outfielder Steven Kwan and catcher Bo Naylor back in the lineup.
But, Pluto said there's been a bit of a shakeup at shortstop and center field.
"Your shortstop for the moment is Brayan Rocchio. He's a switch-hitting shortstop and they've given the job to him. They finally picked somebody to do that," Pluto said.
Career shortstop/second baseman Tyler Freeman is taking over in center field for Myles Straw, who has been sent to AAA Columbus.
"He (Straw) has $19 million and three years left on a contract. Two years ago he won a Gold Glove. And it's like the last two years, he wasn't just bad, he was horrible at the plate. To me, they're sending Straw a message here. They must want him to make some adjustments as a hitter, because I'm sure they'd like to have him back and they could bring him back," Pluto said.
Pluto's prediction on the season record is a dismal 72-90.
"Now, they are in a bad division. If the starting pitching holds up and it could, and if they could find the bullpen to be above average, then they could be a surprise team," Pluto said.
The team has some promising prospects that fans could see later in the season, Pluto said. Outfielder Chase DeLauter, who will likely open the season at AA Akron, hit .520 with four home runs and 13 RBI in 13 Cactus League games. First baseman Kyle Manzardo hit .381 with a .934 OPS, two walks and seven strikeouts in 13 games during camp. And infielder Angel Martinez hit .448 with two doubles, a triple and two home runs in 12 spring training games.
