Chase DeLauter adds to Guardians hype with incredible spring performance

On Monday the Cleveland Guardians opened their customary two-game spring training finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. 

Usually it’s a pretty nondescript series that helps both teams prepare for the start of the regular season. But sometimes it can produce a moment that rises above the “end of spring training fog.” 

Or, as Chase DeLauter showed on Monday, it can sometimes produce two moments that rise above that fog.

On Monday, DeLauter added to his growing hype train by crushing two majestic homers against the Diamondbacks in Cleveland’s 7-0 win.

While the homers don’t matter in the grand scheme of things since they came in spring training, it was still an incredible sight to see him blast two home runs in a big league ballpark against big league-caliber pitching. 

Chase DeLauter flashed his eye-popping power for Guardians on Monday 

While DeLauter’s injury history has led to moments of frustration for Guardians fans, his first home run against Arizona shows exactly why no one in Cleveland will ever be able to quit on him. 

DeLauter’s first longball traveled an eye-popping 448 feet to dead center, marking the longest home run a Guardians player has hit this spring. Although the homer came on an absolute meatball from Arizona starter Merrill Kelly, it takes a special kind of skillset to be able to hit a ball that far. 

DeLauter’s second home run looked very familiar to his homer from earlier this spring, as he caught up to an inside fastball from Jonathan Loáisiga and smacked it into the right field seats. Not only can DeLauter punish mistakes, but he also has enough power to catch up to (and punish) good pitches. 

DeLauter’s now slashing .459/.535/.838 this spring with three homers and 10 RBI in just 14 games. 

After a year of injuries, teasing and postseason cameos, DeLauter is set to be an everyday outfielder for the Guardians in 2026, which means we could end up seeing plenty of performances like the one we did on Monday. 

Manager Stephen Vogt said earlier this week that DeLauter will just play right field and designated hitter this season, which is smart considering his checkered injury history. While he could be an option in center field, his health is the main priority. 

“We want to keep Chase as close to 100% every day as possible,” Vogt said, per Cleveland.com’s Paul Hoynes. “No. 1, right field is Chase’s best position. It also allows him to have the consistency in that ‘I know where I’m going to be and I know where I’ve got to go.’”

DeLauter had an injury scare earlier this spring when he suffered some lower body soreness that kept him out for a couple days, but he was able to bounce back and has stayed healthy since. 

There’s always going to be an injury risk for DeLauter (he’s yet to play in more than 57 games in a single season), but the Guardians desperately need some kind of power from their outfield. Rolling the dice on DeLauter makes sense, especially if it comes with Steven Kwan next to him in center field.