Guardians Predicted To Make Bold Decision With Opening Day Lineup

Even as a snowstorm sweeps through the country, Spring Training is getting closer with each passing day. We're officially at the offseason when projections about Opening Day lineups can start to be made.

Even if the Cleveland Guardians don't make any more trades this winter, their lineup will look much different this spring.

Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report recently predicted every team's 2025 Opening Day lineup and came up with this for the Guardians:

LF Steven Kwan
DH Kyle Manzardo
3B José Ramírez
1B Carlos Santana
RF Jhonkensy Noel
CF Lane Thomas
C Bo Naylor
2B Gabriel Arias
SS Brayan Rocchio
SP Tanner Bibee

There's a lot with this lineup that makes sense and will likely come to fruition on March 27. However, there are some areas that could be debated.

Carlos Santana may be a better option to him hitting second because of being a swing hitter, his career on-base percentage, and Kyle Manzardo's strikeout tendencies during his rookie season.

Oct 17, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians first baseman Kyle Manzardo (9) hits a two-run home run during the third inning against the New York Yankees in game 3 of the American League Championship Series at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images | David Dermer-Imagn Images

The most controversial take of this prediction is that Gabriel Arias will be Cleveland's second baseman to start the 2025 season.

Chris Antonetti mentioned Arias could get some reps there after the Andres Gimenez trade, but the Guardians have many other options, including Juan Brito, Tyler Freeman, or even Angel Martinez.

Reuter noted that Arias "batted .317/.354/.544 over 192 plate appearances following a midseason demotion to Triple-A," and he's swung the bat pretty well during winter league, too.

However, Arias has performed highly at every level except with the big-league team. In his 563 career plate appearances, He has a .212/.274/.350 slash line and a .624 OPS. He's also had a strikeout rate of 32.3 percent over his last three seasons in the majors.

It's understandable that the Guardians want to get one last look at Arias, given that he is out of minor-league options. However, it would make more sense for this to be in a utility role and move him around the diamond.

Giving a player such as Brito the full-time role at second base could help him develop and give the Guardians their best offensive option in the lineup.

Perhaps Arias will continue to impress through spring training and win the potential position battle that is forming. However, this is a bold prediction to make at this point in the offseason.