3 Key Roles the Cleveland Guardians Quietly Locked In This Spring

This spring, the Cleveland Guardians have been focused on weeding out the prospects that aren't ready for big league time early in the 2026 campaign, while also establishing roles in the bullpen for new additions.

With the team looking to replicate the success they found in 2025, minus the bumps in the road, figuring out where players are best fit has been a priority.

Here are three key roles the Guardians' coaching staff was able to solidify heading into the upcoming season:

Chase DeLauter's an Everyday Bat

As long as he's healthy, DeLauter has a chance to be one of the Guardians' most exciting and impactful bats in the 2026 season.

This spring, he's been by far one of the most reliable hitters. Across 12 games and 33 at-bats, he has recorded a team-high 13 hits, four doubles and a home run for six total RBI. He also has kept a keen eye at the plate, something that is important for a player making the jump from the minors to the majors, with four walks to four strikeouts.

While he did deal with a small injury that kept him off the field for a few days, when he returned, he didn't lose a beat. He's currently slashing .394/.459/.606 for an OPS of 1.065.

His spot in the Guardians' lineup should see him as a starting outfielder, potentially right field, while also serving time as a designated hitter. This will allow the coaching staff to avoid wearing him down too much by being in the outfield each day, while also being able to keep his bat in the lineup on a near-daily basis.

Peyton Pallette's a Reliable Bullpen Arm

When spring training began, many began questioning the reliability of the Guardians' bullpen. After all, it's a mix of questionable, offseason signings and prospect arms, making it hard to see exactly what they would look like this year,

Well, while some fizzled themselves out of the picture, others, like Pallette, showed they deserve to be staples in the bullpen on the major league roster.

On Friday, March 20, it was announced that Pallette would make the Opening Day roster and get a chance to be one of the team's bullpen arms this season.

He earned it. Across five games played and six innings pitched, he's posted a 0.00 ERA and 1.00 WHIP, allowing just three hits and three walks while striking out an impressive mark of 11 batters. Out of most of Cleveland's relievers this spring, he's looked by far one of the sharpest.

His role will likely see him be a sixth or seventh-inning arm, allowing him to relieve whoever is starting on the mound before setting up the game-finishing arms.

"It was a relief," Pallette said when asked about what the opportunity to make the Opening Day roster means to him. "It's a dream come true. But also, there's still a job to do."

Shawn Armstrong is Cade Smith's setup

Armstrong was added to the Guardians' roster during the offseason, with the team needing to add another late-game arm to help alleviate pressure on players like Erik Sabrowski and Cade Smith to help close out every game.

The one-year deal, worth roughly $5.5 million, was a pretty good bargain for Cleveland, which was hoping not to break the bank.

Being a veteran as well, Armstrong's experience is going to help the Guardians out greatly. He's coming off a stellar season with the Texas Rangers in 2025, where he tossed a 2.31 ERA across 71 appearances. He had the second-best WHIP in MLB among pitchers who tossed in at least 50 innings of action.

Last year, he pitched most of the time in the eighth and ninth innings, making him a perfect late-game arm for the Guardians.

This spring, he's demonstrated reliability on the mound, something the Guardians needed to be sure of before they went into the campaign with trust in him to be the setup for Smith.