Guardians spring training start dates officially announced

It may seem hard to believe given the weather outside in Northeast Ohio, but the start of spring training is almost here for the Cleveland Guardians (and the rest of baseball). 

In fact, it’s less than a month away, as Guardians pitchers and catchers are set to report to Goodyear, Arizona for spring training on Feb. 12, which will be followed by the first full-squad workout on Feb. 17. 

While there’s a month of spring training to be played after that before the actual season starts, it’s a refreshing reminder of how close we are to the start of baseball being back. 

The Guardians are heading to spring training in less than a month 

There’s no denying this will be an important spring for the Guardians. Although that’s something you can say about every team’s spring training every year (everyone’s undefeated in the spring, after all), the Guardians are in the unique position of having plenty of young players who could benefit from a full spring of reps against big league pitching. 

That list is highlighted by young outfielders Chase DeLauter and George Valera, both of whom made their big league debuts late last season and could work their way into the outfield picture in 2026 — if not on Opening Day. 

The buck doesn’t stop there either, as Khalil Watson and Angel Genao are two rookie position players who were added to the 40-man roster in the offseason and will be looking to make an impression in big league camp. 

Stephen Vogt has already said that Gabriel Arias and Brayan Rocchio will see plenty of time on the infield in the spring, but Genao should work his way into the picture somehow. 

The Guardians are also notorious for having at least one pitcher come out of nowhere in the spring to earn a starting spot (Ben Lively in 2024 and Joey Cantillo in 2025), so it’ll also be fun to keep an eye on their stable of arms. 

Even though the Guardians aren’t scrimmaging any World Baseball Classic teams this  the spring, their spring is still going to be impacted by the WBC thanks to the sheer number of players they’re sending to the tournament. 

José Ramírez recently committed to play for the Dominican Republic , while closer Cade Smith and Bo Naylor are going to play for Canada and top prospect Travis Bazzana is set to represent his home country of Australia. 

Even though Ramírez, Smith and Naylor aren’t in danger of losing their roster spot, their vacancies will open up some more opportunities for some of the younger players in camp, which will be exciting to watch. 

The Guardians open Cactus League play on Feb. 21 with split-squad matchups against the Reds and Brewers.