Cleveland Sports Forum

https://twitter.com/i/status/1787205273448243375

I guess the Ramirez bat flip says it all. A lot of frustration was released on that flip. Maybe better days are ahead for Josie. Hope the pent up frustration gets released against the Tigers this week.

<

'Elite' J-Ram ends epic 10-pitch AB with go-ahead blast

By Mandy Bell @MandyBell02

6:09 PM EDT

CLEVELAND -- The José Ramírez theorem is simple: The more pitches he sees in an at-bat, the more likely he is to hit a home run.

Just 10 days ago, Ramírez stole every headline after ending a 10-pitch at-bat with a grand slam. At the time, the hope was that the big blast would finally get the All-Star third baseman to see better results at the plate. Instead, it was the last extra-base hit he enjoyed until the sixth inning on Sunday.

Ramírez may have gone through an 0-for-19 stretch in that time, but this moment was well worth the wait. After trailing by one through the first five and a half innings, he beat Angels righty Griffin Canning on the 10th pitch of the at-bat by launching a go-ahead two-run homer that helped lift Cleveland to a 4-1 victory over Los Angeles in the rubber game at Progressive Field.

“He's one of the best hitters in baseball,” Angels manager Ron Washington said. “That’s American League and National League. And he got us. They got us the last two games with balls leaving the ballpark.”

Ramírez now has five homers in plate appearances with at least 10 pitches. Only one other Cleveland player has even two such homers since pitch counts began being tracked in 1988: Casey Blake. Only three Major League players have more than four of these home runs: Todd Helton (eight), Paul Konerko (seven) and Paul Goldschmidt (six).

“He does everything extremely well,” said Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor, who added a two-run homer of his own in the eighth. “We’re blessed to have him as a teammate, all of us. We appreciate his game and we all try to learn from him a lot and use little parts of his game and add to ours as individuals.”

Ramírez’s teammates are trying to help him learn, too. Guardians starter Carlos Carrasco saw tendencies with Canning.

“I told him that pretty much that guy was attacking every pitch with the slider, up a little bit in the zone,” Carrasco said.

That’s exactly what Ramírez saw. He fell behind 0-1 in the count on a slider in the dirt. A changeup out of the zone evened the count, 1-1. But Ramírez was prepared for that slider and fouled off two of those offerings in the next two pitches.

“Even with the at-bat with Hosey, it didn’t start off very pretty,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said, “but he battled and battled and battled, gained information and then got a mistake and didn’t miss it. That’s what elite players do.”

Pitch No. 5 was a fastball that Ramírez fouled off before he sat on two sliders out of the zone to force a 3-2 count. Ramírez fouled off a changeup and a slider before he got a heater over the outside corner of the plate that he sent into the right-center-field seats.

“He was fouling off sliders and he was fouling off changeups,” Canning said. “So I just felt like I needed to show him something different.”

“He never misses that fastball,” Carrasco said.

The homer was exactly what Ramírez needed to try to bust out of the bad-luck slump he’s fallen into. He’s had hard-hit balls in the last handful of games, but has walked away with nothing to show for it. But it was an even bigger moment for the Guardians, who were hoping to take the series after falling to Atlanta and Houston.

These are the moments that Ramírez has always been built for, regardless of how he’s done in his recent contests. Sunday's home run marked his 86th career go-ahead blast, which tied him with Larry Doby for the most in franchise history (since 1912) ahead of Jim Thome’s 85.

“It's tough,” Angels catcher Matt Thaiss said. “I mean, I think he's like a top three hitter in the game. He’s really, really good from both sides of the plate. He knows what he's doing. You just have to keep battling with him and Griff did that for 10 pitches. He got us there and won that one.”

When Ramírez walked back to the dugout, he didn’t forget about his conversation with Carrasco before the at-bat.

“After the homer, he just came to me and [said], ‘I did that for you,’” Carrasco said with a grin. “I was so glad. Those guys, they play hard. Every time when we go out there, they just play hard and it’s fun to watch.”

<

Guardians to call up slugging No. 2 prospect Manzardo (source)

By Mandy Bell @MandyBell02

4:59 PM EDT

CLEVELAND -- The Kyle Manzardo Era is about to begin in Cleveland.

According to sources, the Guardians are expected to add Manzardo to the Major League roster on Monday afternoon in place of outfielder Steven Kwan, who will be heading to the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. The team has not confirmed the moves.

Manzardo, the team’s No. 2 prospect and No. 52 overall according to MLB Pipeline, has done everything in his power to get this call. In his last 14 games alone, he’s hit eight homers with six doubles and 14 RBIs. His defense at first base has improved and his bat has been consistent since the Triple-A season began.

“He’s been good against left-handed pitching, his approach against lefties has improved,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said prior to Cleveland’s 4-1 victory over the Angels on Sunday. “He’s worked really hard at his defense, both his footwork around the bag and his throwing and he continues to put up and manage really good at-bats.”

The problem was, the Guardians didn’t have room for young first baseman on the active roster. Josh Naylor handles the everyday duties at first base. Gabriel Arias brings defensive versatility to the table. Estevan Florial is still young and the team needs a longer look at him before deciding if it wants to part ways. Ramón Laureano is one of the few right-handed bats the team can turn to off the bench. There wasn’t a missing piece of the puzzle that Manzardo would be able to fill, despite how well he was hitting in Columbus.

That is, until now. This is the last way the Guardians would’ve wanted to add Manzardo to the roster, considering Kwan has been the best hitter in the American League this year. Entering the day, his 47 hits and .353 average were the best in the AL and he hadn’t struck out in an MLB-best 74 consecutive plate appearances. Adding Manzardo is something the team would hope would only improve the lineup, but this way, it’s coming with some drawbacks with the loss of the Guardians' leadoff hitter.

With Kwan on the IL, expect Will Brennan to see more time in left field and Laureano in right. Florial has the ability to play all three outfield spots, so the Guardians are still covered in the grass. Manzardo can work in at first base, but can also serve as the DH on days that Naylor is in the field.

However, Manzardo will now have his chance to prove that what he did all through Spring Training and in Triple-A can translate to the big league level. He was acquired at last year’s Trade Deadline from the Rays in exchange for righty Aaron Civale to bring some pop to the middle of the order that’s been missing from this lineup. With José Ramírez going deep on Sunday and Josh Naylor being the source of this team’s power all season, adding Manzardo has the potential to boost this lineup even more.

In 13 Cactus League games, Manzardo hit .381 with a .934 OPS, two doubles and two RBIs. The Guardians optioned him to Triple-A Columbus, hoping that he would show that his success at the plate would continue throughout the early weeks of the season. Once it did, it was clear that Manzardo was the only option to be promoted when a spot opened up.

<

Zack Meisel
@ZackMeisel
·
47m
Steven Kwan has an acute left hamstring strain and is expected to miss four weeks.

Prospect Scouting Report: #1 1B Kyle Manzardo

Will Manzardo be the rare hit over power corner type that can succeed?

JUSTIN LADA

MAY 6







Kyle Manzardo Bio

Age (2024 season): 23
Acquired: Trade (TB, 2023, Aaron Civale)
2023 Level: Triple-A
Height: 6’0
Weight: 1205
Bats: Left
Throws: Right

Kyle Manzardo 2023 Stats

PA: 415
AVG/OBP/SLG: .237/.337/.464
2B: 27
HR: 10
SB: 1/2
K%/BB%: 19%/13%

Kyle Manzardo 2024 Scouting Grades

Hit: 60
Power: 50
Speed: 40
Defense: 40
Arm: 40
Overall: 55
Risk: Moderate
ETA: 2024

Build & Background

Medium build overall. Undersized for a first base/corner type. Improved strength in lower body to go with strong arms. Below average athlete overall. First base only defensive profile. Crouched stance and good use of lower half and arms to extend on swing despite lacking size. Does have some length to his arms. Can cover most of the plate with his swing. Not “launch angle” geared swing, but swing path is deal for driving the ball in the air, especially to his pull side. Average bat speed. Plus makeup and worth ethic, mentally tough attitude. Overcame shoulder injury during 2023 season. From a non-traditional baseball area (Iowa) and a somewhat non-traditional baseball school (Washington State University). Acquired by the Guardians July 2023 from Tampa Bay in exchange for Aaron Civale.

What Manzardo Does Well

Good bat to ball skills and overall pitch recognition. Knows and handles the strike zone very well. Knows where his swing works best. Good feel for the barrel. Hit over power type profile, though his strength has improved and overall power has trended upwards early in 2024. Swing path helps him get the ball in the air and does well using the barrel to do damage to his pull side. Should be able to maximize power output due to contact ability/above average approach, and ability to lift and pull fly balls. Lacks “traditional” corner only power profile but should contribute a good combination of extra base hits plus on-base skills thanks to approach and pitch recognition. Adjusts well to breaking stuff low. Has improved approach against lefties so far in 2024.

Where Manzardo Needs to Improve

At this point, it’s unlikely Manzardo ever develops true “first base” type power. Peak over the fence power may be 25 homers or so. Has struggled with left handers in the past, though that has improved early in 2024. While he has a good approach at the plate, Manzardo can show some passivity at times and may take called third strikes or pass on strikes, though he may think he can’t do damage against them. Swing can struggle to cover the top half of the zone with velocity, and has shown some weakness against higher end velocity over all. Has worked to improve overall footwork at first base and throwing, but is an average mover at best around the bag. Not going to add value with his speed and unlikely with defense.

Key Stats

Hit six of his 17 homers in 2023 at Columbus in just 21 games. He needed 73 games to hit 11 while with Tampa Bay. The power output late in 2023 showed that he was able to successfully recover from the shoulder injury that put a dent in his overall hitting in the first half of 2024.

Intangibles

Manzardo is lauded for plus-makeup and work ethic. Pushed hard to play through shoulder issue and again rehab to come back after. Comes from a non-traditional baseball area, and forced to work harder to stand out. Has also had to deal with personal medical issues with family and continue to persevere on the field while dealing with that in the background.

Future

First base/DH types that aren’t prototypical sluggers are hard to project a ton of value to. Manzardo is going to need to be more of a throwback, Will Clark, John Olerud type of hitter for higher averages and doubles+homers power to add value offensively. If his peak is 25 homers, he should be able to combine that with 25 doubles or so do add to his slugging. He should be able to add offensive value through taking walks as well. I think he will hit enough and get the most out of his power due to the nature of his swing and batted ball type to be an above average offensive contributor, even with the lack of traditional power. The separator will be what he does against left handers and if he can learn to handle them or will have the be a platoon hitter, which would really eat into his offensive value as a non-slugger first base type.

Role

55 - Hit over power first baseman that hits enough, walks enough and maximizes his power output enough to be an above average offensive contributor

<

Steven Kwan Expected To Miss Around Four Weeks
By Anthony Franco | May 6, 2024 at 9:08pm CDT

The Guardians placed American League batting leader Steven Kwan on the injured list this afternoon. Testing revealed the underrated left fielder suffered an “acute” strain of his left hamstring, tweets Zack Meisel of the Athletic. Kwan is expected to be sidelined for about a month.

It is tough news given Kwan’s scorching start to the season. The left-handed hitter has turned in a .353/.407/.496 batting line over 145 plate appearances. Kwan has walked as often as he’s gone down on strikes (11 times apiece). It looked to be a massive rebound after he had a league average .268/.340/.370 slash in his second big league campaign. Paired with his characteristically elite left field defense, Kwan has been one of the sport’s most valuable players through six weeks.

The silver lining is that Cleveland has a high-upside replacement stepping into the lineup. The Guards promoted top prospect Kyle Manzardo as the corresponding move for Kwan’s IL placement. Manzardo should get everyday run at designated hitter after hitting .303/.375/.642 to start the season at Triple-A Columbus. Estevan Florial, who has been Cleveland’s primary DH, should see the majority of the left field work in Kwan’s absence. That was the arrangement Stephen Vogt ran in this evening’s 2-1 win over the Tigers. (Manzardo struck out in his first three big league at-bats.)

Cleveland’s outfield injuries aren’t exclusive to the major league level. Top prospect Chase DeLauter has been diagnosed with a fractured fifth metatarsal in his left foot, the team announced over the weekend (link via Mandy Bell of MLB.com). The 22-year-old is going to see a specialist to weigh his treatment options.

This is unfortunately not unfamiliar territory for DeLauter, whom the Guardians selected 16th overall two years ago.. He also suffered a fracture in that foot over the 2022-23 offseason. That required surgery and prevented him from making his season debut until early June. DeLauter tore through High-A pitching when he returned, hitting .366/.403/.549 in 42 games. He earned a late-season bump to Double-A and was widely regarded as a Top 50 minor league talent going into this year.

DeLauter continued to rake in Spring Training, connecting on four homers while hitting .520 in 13 exhibition games. That didn’t carry over into his first few weeks at Double-A Akron, as he was off to a .197/.296/.295 start over 71 plate appearances. That’s a small sample in a cold early-season setting, so it likely wasn’t of much concern to the organization. The potential for another extended injury absence — particularly with a second foot injury — is more worrisome, though it remains to be seen if he’ll be able to rehab without surgery this time around.

particularly with a second foot injury

Third including the same foot in college

Guardians Prospective
@CleGuardPro

Good news on the injury front for the Cleveland #Guardians top prospect 22-year-old OF Chase DeLauter as he will not need surgery on his left foot. DeLauter actually got to shed his walking boot today and was giving the green light to start the return to play protocol. The organization is also having him change his cleats and insoles as well as adding orthotics. The hope is he should be back sooner rather than later.

I'm happy to get some good news on the injury front. We're still missing most of our most promising pitchers.
Cantillo update?

Guardians turn heads-up play in extra innings, catch Detroit runner off base

Published: May. 08, 2024, 5:59 p.m.

By Joe Noga, cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Brayan Rocchio’s big finish at the plate was set up by a big play on the infield.

Rocchio, Cleveland’s 23-year-old rookie shortstop, caught Tigers veteran infielder Javier Baez straying a little too far off second base after fielding a smash from pinch hitter Ryan Vilade for what turned out to be a critical out in the 10th inning of the Guardians 5-4 comeback win Wednesday at Progressive Field.

It was Rocchio who delivered the game-winning RBI on a line drive single against a five-man infield in the bottom of the 10th, but without his heads-up play in the top of the frame, Cleveland might not have been in a position to win.

Rocchio picked Vilade’s one-hopper at 99.9mph and flipped the ball to Andrés Giménez at the bag. Giménez applied the tag, eliminating the automatic runner to start extra innings. The out was important because it allowed closer Emmanuel Clase to work comfortably to Riley Greene and Andy Ibanez without a runner in scoring position.

Clase whiffed Greene and got Ibanez on a ground out without a run scoring, setting up Rocchio’s walk-off single in the bottom of the inning.

Rocchio said with Clase’s tendency to get ground balls, he was shading Vilade a bit up the middle. Once he got the ball and saw Baez straying too far from second, he made a quick decision to get rid of it.

“The important part is as a team we never give up and we keep communicating throughout the game,” Rocchio said via Guardians interpreter Agustin Rivero. “We’re really united and we always keep communicating with each other.”

Manager Stephen Vogt said the play was made partly because of Rocchio’s ability to read Baez’s movements and partly because of his instincts.

“It was just a heads up play by Rocchio right there to get that out,” Vogt said.

Catcher David Fry, whose solo home run with one out in the ninth tied the score and forced the extra frames, said from his perspective Rocchio’s play was unbelievable because of what was on the line at that point.

“In that situation, a guy’s coming up, he may bunt, and we’re just thinking we’ve got to get an out here,” Fry said. “The awareness and the IQ right there in a huge situation to get that lead runner at second, it’s probably what helped win the game.”

<

LF, catcher, game-tying HR: All in a day's work for Guardians' latest hero

CLEVELAND -- As each day of Spring Training passed and Guardians manager Stephen Vogt learned more about his new team, he could hardly go a sentence without using the word “versatility.” And no player better exemplifies it than David Fry.

For a scrappy club, versatility is essential, whether it’s on the bases, in the bullpen or on defense. Sometimes, it’s the reason the Guardians are able to separate themselves from their opponents, even when fate seems to be carrying momentum in the opposite direction, which is exactly what happened on Wednesday.

The Guardians were down to their final two outs before Fry hit a game-tying home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to force extras. Brayan Rocchio then served the walk-off single over the five-man infield in the 10th to lift the Guardians to a 5-4 victory over the Tigers at Progressive Field. But none of that happens without Cleveland reshuffling the deck in the seventh.

Cleveland was down by two runs with two outs. The offense hadn’t showed any signs of gaining steam after plating a pair of runs in the second inning. Vogt wanted to take advantage of his bench and mix up the vibe on offense. So, he sent Kyle Manzardo to the plate instead of third baseman Gabriel Arias to face righty Jason Foley.

Manzardo picked up his first career hit on a single down the left-field line. Vogt dug deeper into his bench and replaced Manzardo with pinch-runner Ramón Laureano and then pinch-hit Bo Naylor for Austin Hedges in the ensuing at-bat. But when Detroit turned to its bullpen and called on a lefty, the Guardians decided to empty the bench by pinch-hitting Tyler Freeman for Naylor “I mean, the seventh inning was chaos, right?” Vogt said. “Emptying the bench like that. But that’s how we’re built. We’re built to do things like that. They’re all prepared to do it.”

In that inning, it didn’t provide the results the Guardians were hoping for, but it sparked some energy in the dugout.

“Defensively, we’re gonna try weird stuff,” Vogt said. “We’re gonna do some different things to try and generate offense in games where we don’t really have it rolling.

It was because of Fry’s versatility that he was in the lineup in the first place. As a backup catcher, he was in left field to start the game, with Cleveland adopting a group approach to replace the injured Steven Kwan. And it was because of Fry’s versatility that he was able to move behind the dish when Hedges (and Naylor, for that matter) were pinch-hit for. That not only allowed the Guardians to make the extra move in the seventh, but it also allowed Fry to remain in the lineup to ultimately become the hero.

“I can’t speak enough to what David means to us, being able to catch, play first, play third, play outfield, and obviously come up with clutch hit after clutch hit -- and he’s not playing every day,” Vogt said. “He’s just a baseball player, and David’s invaluable for us.”

Despite not playing every day, Fry has managed to keep his average at .316 and his OPS at .929 so far this season. And when the game reaches the later innings, he’s a reliable bat to turn to, considering he’s hitting .429 (6-for-14) with one homer and five RBIs in the eighth inning or later this year.

“They do such a good job of keeping us prepared for whatever role we’re gonna be in,” Fry said. “We have so many guys who can play so many different positions that it makes it easier for the coaching staff to move guys around.”

FFreeman, who has been playing center field all year, remained in Wednesday’s game after pinch-running to play third base. Arias has already played seven different positions this season. Fry has the ability to play five. And when this is an option for a team that has a never-say-die attitude, the Guardians are able to find an unconventional recipe for success.

“I think it’s just who we are as a team,” Fry said. “I mean, we talk about it all the time -- we’re down and it’s just like, ‘Yeah, we’re probably gonna win tonight,’ no matter what the score is. ... It’s just the confidence we have as a group and just the belief we have in one another.”

While we like to complain about bad Cleveland trades like Caminero for Tobias Myers.
Sometimes the little deals go our way: a couple years ago Guardians needed to clear a roster spot and DFA'd big RHP Juan Carlos Mejia. They found a team willing to take them but only willing to offer a AA C-1B-2B-3B-LF-RF of no particular renown. But David Fry has turned out to be a very useful player and the very model of a modern utility man.

Guardians Acquire Darren McCaughan From Marlins
By Darragh McDonald | May 9, 2024 at 2:05pm CDT

The Guardians announced today that they have acquired right-hander Darren McCaughan from the Marlins. The latter club, who designated the righty for assignment on the weekend, receive cash considerations in return. The Guards optioned McCaughan to Triple-A Columbus and transferred Gavin Williams to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man roster spot.

McCaughan, 28, spent his entire career with the Mariners until he was designated for assignment in February. He was traded to the Marlins for cash and was sent to Triple-A Jacksonville to start the year. He made five starts there with poor results, posting a 6.14 earned run average despite average-ish peripherals. He struck out 22.2% of batters faced with an 8.1% walk rate, but with a .338 batting average on balls in play and 52.8% strand rate.

The Marlins called him up to the big leagues last week. In Saturday’s game against Oakland, Trevor Rogers allowed eight earned runs in 2 1/3 innings. McCaughan came in for some long relief, throwing 4 2/3 but also allowing eight earned runs on the way to a 20-4 loss. McCaughan was designated for assignment the next day.

The Guardians are undoubtedly interested in McCaughan based on his work in previous seasons. From 2021 to 2023, he tossed 408 2/3 innings for Triple-A Tacoma, in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He had a 4.98 ERA in that time as well as a 21.4% strikeout rate and 6% walk rate.

Cleveland has less pitching depth than other recent seasons. Shane Bieber required Tommy John surgery while Williams has been on the IL all year due to elbow soreness. Their rotation currently consists of three youngsters in Triston McKenzie, Logan Allen and Tanner Bibee, as well as two veterans in Carlos Carrasco and Ben Lively. McKenzie hardly pitched last year due to a sprain of his UCL and is currently getting by with diminished stuff. Allen has a 6.41 ERA on the year, Bibee 4.91 and Carrasco 5.67. Lively is down at 2.08 in only four starts. He was at 5.38 last year with the Reds, his first MLB action since 2019.

Despite the lackluster results from the rotation, the club is 24-13 and leading the American League Central. To help keep things afloat, they have been actively trying to bolster the starting depth. They acquired Zak Kent from the Rangers on Opening Day and later grabbed Wes Parsons from the Blue Jays, sending international bonus pool space away in both cases. With the acquisition of McCaughan, they have now added three optionable starters to their system in the past two months.

As for Williams, as mentioned, he’s been on the injured list all season due to elbow soreness. This transfer is backdated to his initial IL placement, meaning he’s ineligible return until late May. He recently resumed a throwing program but will need to build up a full starter’s workload and isn’t going to be ready in the next month or so regardless.

Not sure if the "recent setback" for Williams is a new one, or the one from two weeks ago
As for the new acquisitions, Kent has already moved to the IL himself

Williams did not have a new injury. Just extended DL but it goes back to original problem.