2022 Cleveland Guardians Regular Season Thread

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Zach Meisel has this in The Athletic:

Since the club demoted [Franmil Reyes] to Triple A earlier this week, coaches have raved about having the designated-hitter spot unclogged, freeing up opportunities for Jones, González and Benson and sparing Naylor, José Ramírez and Amed Rosario from playing defense every day.

And...

But when Reyes arrived at spring training once the league’s lockout ceased, he revealed he hadn’t faced any live pitching, and members of the organization thought he was out of shape. Six months earlier, on that afternoon before the season finale in Texas, Reyes said this:

“Going into the offseason, I want to work and come back like I did in 2020 spring training. You know, have my body a little bit more in shape. I want to prepare myself to play 162 games.”

It’s easy to highlight certain criticisms — weight gain, a lack of focus on his craft — when a player’s production craters. But Reyes’ approach to this season seems to have worn on the organization’s chief decision-makers.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

And Meisel also reports that Bieber's injury last season is still affecting his pitching.

For the first time in his career, Shane Bieber is attempting to make significant adjustments to his throwing mechanics. Doing so in-season isn’t an ideal scenario, and he said it was “frustrating.”

“I feel like I’m on the right path,” he told The Athletic, “but I’m not near where I know I can be and where I want to be. It’s interesting to go out there and experiment in bullpens and even in a Major League Baseball game while still trying to achieve the best results, so it’s a weird mix and definitely a challenge, both physically and mentally.”

Bieber’s diminished fastball velocity has been well-documented — an average of 94.1 mph in 2020, 92.8 mph in 2021 and 91.0 mph in 2022. Perhaps as noticeable is his pitch usage. He throws his slider about as often as his fastball, and for good reason. The pitch has a higher whiff rate than his other offerings.

Bieber said he fell into troublesome habits with his delivery last summer to protect his arm when his shoulder was barking. He said he’s had to “re-pattern what’s most efficient and most powerful.”

“Even though mentally I’ve let off the training wheels, because I feel 100 percent, I think my arm action is just a little bit less efficient than I’d like it to be,” he said. “I have to work through the arm action in the middle of the season, which is different.”

And while working through those changes, Bieber has logged a 3.39 ERA in 20 starts, with about a strikeout per inning. He isn’t the otherworldly force on the mound he was in 2020, but his numbers are in line with where they were in 2019 (when he was an All-Star and finished fourth in the American League Cy Young balloting) and 2021.

“I definitely hold myself to a high standard,” he said. “There’s more in there for me.”

 

[PocketMonger]

Hopefully we see Valera by mid June next year factoring service time considerations.

 

[DCTribefan]

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[Criznit]

Zach Meisel has this in The Athletic:
And...

But when Reyes arrived at spring training once the league’s lockout ceased, he revealed he hadn’t faced any live pitching, and members of the organization thought he was out of shape. Six months earlier, on that afternoon before the season finale in Texas, Reyes said this:

So did several posters.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Like I stated before, I believe Miller is a good hitter. He demonstrated that throughout his minor league career and at times in Cleveland. He is not a 1B and I think he needs a reboot which isn't uncommon for young players. Would not playing out of position help him? I don't know, but I suspect it would. Having said that, I think you ask a legitimate question. What is his role on this team going forward? I also see truth in you saying "he can't compete with Rosario, Gimenez, Freeman, Arias and others at 2B/SS".

This is what I would like to see from Owen if possible. I'd like to see him get stronger. If he could add 10-15lbs of good muscle weight I believe that it could help him in a couple of different ways. I still believe that Owen is/can be one of the better hitters on this team. He's just not there yet and asking if he ever will be isn't a question without basis IMO.

Miller's rookie wRC+ last year in 202 PA's was +49 (Fangraphs). This year in 358 PA's it's up to +85. If the trend continues he could be an average offensive player next year. He needs to reduce his chase rate, though. He's hacking at 36-38% of the bad pitches he sees, depending on the source.

Lack of strength or body mass is not his problem. Chasing too many bad pitches and getting too few barrels (3.5%) is his problem, IMO.

But where does that put him? First base? It looks like Naylor is their first baseman of the future with the DH rotating among regulars who could use a day off their feet. Will Benson was being moved to first base before he was called up. I question whether Owen will ever hit well enough to justify a corner infield position. Not to mention that he's a second baseman trying to play first with sometimes embarrassing results.

Freeman and Arias are knocking on the door behind Rosario and Gimenez. Rocchio is a top 100 prospect with an ETA of 2023. I don't see any chance of Miller being a starting middle infielder or even a UIF unless we package some middle infield prospects in a major deal.

I would consider a position change. I wonder if he would be willing to try catching.

 

[sportscoach]

Miller's rookie wRC+ last year in 202 PA's was +49 (Fangraphs). This year in 358 PA's it's up to +85. If the trend continues he could be an average offensive player next year. He needs to reduce his chase rate, though. He's hacking at 36-38% of the bad pitches he sees, depending on the source.

Lack of strength or body mass is not his problem. Chasing too many bad pitches and getting too few barrels (3.5%) is his problem, IMO.

But where does that put him? First base? It looks like Naylor is their first baseman of the future with the DH rotating among regulars who could use a day off their feet. Will Benson was being moved to first base before he was called up. I question whether Owen will ever hit well enough to justify a corner infield position. Not to mention that he's a second baseman trying to play first with sometimes embarrassing results.

Freeman and Arias are knocking on the door behind Rosario and Gimenez. Rocchio is a top 100 prospect with an ETA of 2023. I don't see any chance of Miller being a starting middle infielder or even a UIF unless we package some middle infield prospects in a major deal.

I would consider a position change. I wonder if he would be willing to try catching.

If you want someone to play catcher, they need a good 1000+ innings before they are even close to MLB ready.

Miller was actually supposed to be the main utility guy for this team going forward. He was supposed to be a Ben Zobrist type, which I think a lot of believe he can be...

 

[DJTJ]

Miller's rookie wRC+ last year in 202 PA's was +49 (Fangraphs). This year in 358 PA's it's up to +85. If the trend continues he could be an average offensive player next year. He needs to reduce his chase rate, though. He's hacking at 36-38% of the bad pitches he sees, depending on the source.

Lack of strength or body mass is not his problem. Chasing too many bad pitches and getting too few barrels (3.5%) is his problem, IMO.

But where does that put him? First base? It looks like Naylor is their first baseman of the future with the DH rotating among regulars who could use a day off their feet. Will Benson was being moved to first base before he was called up. I question whether Owen will ever hit well enough to justify a corner infield position. Not to mention that he's a second baseman trying to play first with sometimes embarrassing results.

Freeman and Arias are knocking on the door behind Rosario and Gimenez. Rocchio is a top 100 prospect with an ETA of 2023. I don't see any chance of Miller being a starting middle infielder or even a UIF unless we package some middle infield prospects in a major deal.

I would consider a position change. I wonder if he would be willing to try catching.

I think Owen Miller is willing to play any position the team asks him to to stick on a ML roster.

Doesn’t mean they will.

 

[CDAV45]

Miller's rookie wRC+ last year in 202 PA's was +49 (Fangraphs). This year in 358 PA's it's up to +85. If the trend continues he could be an average offensive player next year. He needs to reduce his chase rate, though. He's hacking at 36-38% of the bad pitches he sees, depending on the source.

Lack of strength or body mass is not his problem. Chasing too many bad pitches and getting too few barrels (3.5%) is his problem, IMO.

But where does that put him? First base? It looks like Naylor is their first baseman of the future with the DH rotating among regulars who could use a day off their feet. Will Benson was being moved to first base before he was called up. I question whether Owen will ever hit well enough to justify a corner infield position. Not to mention that he's a second baseman trying to play first with sometimes embarrassing results.

Freeman and Arias are knocking on the door behind Rosario and Gimenez. Rocchio is a top 100 prospect with an ETA of 2023. I don't see any chance of Miller being a starting middle infielder or even a UIF unless we package some middle infield prospects in a major deal.

I would consider a position change. I wonder if he would be willing to try catching.

We can agree to disagree, but I think if Owen were stronger then he could get to the pitches he was getting to earlier in the season and do more damage to them upon contact.

Right now, Owen doesn't look to have a position other than utility going forward. You and I agree that he is not a corner infielder at this time and the MIF is pretty much tied up with several others.

 

[Soar]

Zach Meisel has this in The Athletic:

Since the club demoted [Franmil Reyes] to Triple A earlier this week, coaches have raved about having the designated-hitter spot unclogged, freeing up opportunities for Jones, González and Benson and sparing Naylor, José Ramírez and Amed Rosario from playing defense every day.

And...

But when Reyes arrived at spring training once the league’s lockout ceased, he revealed he hadn’t faced any live pitching, and members of the organization thought he was out of shape. Six months earlier, on that afternoon before the season finale in Texas, Reyes said this:

“Going into the offseason, I want to work and come back like I did in 2020 spring training. You know, have my body a little bit more in shape. I want to prepare myself to play 162 games.”

It’s easy to highlight certain criticisms — weight gain, a lack of focus on his craft — when a player’s production craters. But Reyes’ approach to this season seems to have worn on the organization’s chief decision-makers.

I’ve said all this about Reyes (out of shape, weight, lack of “desire to improve”) and the inside sauces here keep telling me I’m “wrong” so I guess Meisel is also full of shit.

 

[BimboColesHair]

I’ve said all this about Reyes (out of shape, weight, lack of “desire to improve”) and the inside sauces here keep telling me I’m “wrong” so I guess Meisel is also full of shit.

Hey man. All I’ve ever said is he came back the same weight he was at exit interviews.

Whether you think he was in good shape to end the season last year or not is not what I’ve been talking about.

And Franmil definitely didn’t fall in line as a guy with a “lack of desire to improve”. Very hard on himself and would often times try to improve too many things all at once as an overcompensation.

He got fed some bad ideas this winter by some close associates that didn’t help him much coming off a core injury plagued season too.

 

[DJTJ]

I’ve said all this about Reyes (out of shape, weight, lack of “desire to improve”) and the inside sauces here keep telling me I’m “wrong” so I guess Meisel is also full of shit.

Members in the org and the org aren’t the same thing.

Showing up out of shape, and being out of shape during the season aren’t the same thing.

 

[Real Deal]

Zach Meisel has this in The Athletic:

Since the club demoted [Franmil Reyes] to Triple A earlier this week, coaches have raved about having the designated-hitter spot unclogged, freeing up opportunities for Jones, González and Benson and sparing Naylor, José Ramírez and Amed Rosario from playing defense every day.

And...

But when Reyes arrived at spring training once the league’s lockout ceased, he revealed he hadn’t faced any live pitching, and members of the organization thought he was out of shape. Six months earlier, on that afternoon before the season finale in Texas, Reyes said this:

“Going into the offseason, I want to work and come back like I did in 2020 spring training. You know, have my body a little bit more in shape. I want to prepare myself to play 162 games.”

It’s easy to highlight certain criticisms — weight gain, a lack of focus on his craft — when a player’s production craters. But Reyes’ approach to this season seems to have worn on the organization’s chief decision-makers.

I questioned all of this during his struggles. From game one he was coming up hobbled down first base line.

Key factor into his struggles: out of shape, didn't take the offseason seriously, very lazy, and the game passes you up when you don't work.

I wouldn't be shocked if he latches on somewhere else and becomes the 30 HR/840ops guy. It's up to his dedication.

 

[PPark]

Franmil was claimed by Chicago so the club will save remainder of his salary less the pro-rated minimum.

 

[Benway]

He got fed some bad ideas this winter by some close associates that didn’t help him much coming off a core injury plagued season too.

Partially due to the lockout I'm guessing?