Parker Messick, George Valera Living Up To Offseason Expectations

The rookies have made a massive impact on the Guardians this season

Apr 16, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Parker Messick (77) reacts after giving up his first hit of the game in the ninth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | David Richard-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians have gotten contributions all season long from their young talent. Chase DeLauter got off to a scorching hot start, while Juan Brito and CJ Kayfus have made big plays of their own. Two rookies who have flown a little under the radar coming into the season were Parker Messick and George Valera.

Parker Messick was on the verge of a roster cut, while George Valera had to wait a couple of weeks to start his season due to an injury. Messick has been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season, and Valera has gotten off to a start that is comparable to some of the best in the game.

PARKER MESSICK

Apr 16, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Parker Messick (77) delivers a pitch in the third inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | David Richard-Imagn Images

Parker Messick nearly made baseball history on Thursday night, going eight innings of no-hit baseball before allowing his first hit of the day in the 9th inning. He finished the game going eight innings, but he ended up giving up two earned runs in the final frame. Messick threw a career-high 112 pitches and struck out nine batters in the game of a lifetime.

On the year, Messick is undefeated at 3-0 with an ERA of 1.05 and a WHIP of 0.78. He has gone five innings or more in every start and has not given up more than two earned runs in any start. 

If you want a visual aid of how dominant Messick has been, just look at his Baseball Savant page. It is all red. Not light red, dark red. He is the top pitcher in the game in terms of Pitching Run Value. His expected ERA is 2.71, which is in the 82nd percentile. His chase percentage is 38.3, which is in the 93rd percentile. His barrel and hard-hit rates are both in the 84th percentile, and his K rate is an impressive 26.9%, good for the 74th percentile. 

Messick has a devastating changeup, which helps increase his ground ball percentage. In 2026, his groundball rate is 50.8%, good for the 75th percentile in the game. 

As a result of this scorching start, Messick has fired up the board for AL Cy Young. He is now viewed in the same breath as Cleveland’s own Gavin Williams, and other stars such as Cole Ragans, Framber Valdez, Kevin Gausman, and Joe Ryan.

GEORGE VALERA

Apr 14, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians right fielder George Valera (7) hits a one run double against the St. Louis Cardinals during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

George Valera is a player the Guardians are clearly excited about. Like Messick and DeLauter, Valera saw action at the tail end of 2025. Valera struggled when he saw action last year, but he turned that experience into something to build off this year. 

Having returned from that injury on April 14th, Valera has made an immediate impact. In his first game of the year, he smoked an RBI double. The second game back, Valera had yet another double. On Thursday, Valera was able to collect two hits and an RBI. That makes four hits in three games with two RBI. In 2025, Valera had nine hits in 48 plate appearances.

It is clear Valera has come out of the gate locked in and ready to go, but it is a small sample size. If Valera can continue to string together hits and RBI, it will be very difficult for Manager Stephen Vogt to keep excluding him from his lineups, regardless of the matchup.

All the attention this offseason was on Chase DeLauter and Travis Bazzana, and rightfully so. They are incredible players with a ceiling as high as the stars. DeLauter started hot and has moved up to the favorite for AL Rookie of the Year. But with the way Messick is twirling the ball and the way Valera has smacked the ball, DeLauter may not end up being the best rookie on his own team.