Projected Opening Day lineup for the Cleveland Guardians leaves a lot to be desired

Pitchers and catchers will be reporting before you know it, so there is no time like the present to start looking forward to when the games that actually count begin to take place. Between now and then, there will be plenty of projections of how the Opening Day lineup will be put together and there is one that was recently put together that is not particularly encouraging.

Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter took a stab at Predicting Every MLB Team's 2025 Opening Day Lineup for the second time, and the way Cleveland's is put together does not look like that of a winning ballclub.

To be clear, there are no problems with the top portion of this lineup. The 1-4 are the best bats on the roster and have been slotted in the right spots for their skill sets. Things begin to look a bit questionable immediately after and then finish up in unideal fashion.

The raw power of Jhonkensy Noel is very intriguing, but there is just one problem, he strikes out way too much. Noel struck out 31.8% of the time in 2024, and that is pretty much in line with his minor league numbers, suggesting that it is just who he is. It would be a little different if he had a higher walk rate, but 6.6% is just not going to cut it. A pull-happy high-strikeout hitter (Noel pulled 53.8% of his batted balls last season) with low walk frequency needs so many things to go right for them that it is difficult to envision that happening. If Noel struggles in 2025, it would not be all that surprising, given his offensive profile.

With Noel in right and Steven Kwan in left, Lane Thomas manning center field is really the option for the Guardians. In a perfect scenario, someone else would have been brought in to take over for Thomas in center, either bumping him to right or allowing Cleveland to trade him, but it is what it is here and nothing more.

The bottom third of Cleveland's lineup is a problem

Bo Naylor slotted in as Cleveland's catcher is not shocking in the least bit. The only other catcher on the roster is Austin Hedges, as David Fry will be limited to the DH role for the upcoming season. Naylor is better at the plate than Hedges, and his offensive ceiling is significantly higher, but if he is able to realize that is a different story entirely.

Now is when things go off the rails entirely. Gabriel Arias is not a major league-caliber player and does not belong anywhere near a starting nine, even if it is just a projection from a few months out. Do not be fooled by his numbers in Triple-A last season or what he displayed in Venezuela, the fact of the matter is that Arias is a Quad-A player. Whoever starts on Opening Day is just a placeholder for when Travis Bazzana is ready to make his MLB Debut, anyway, so whoever is chosen will have the job on an interim basis only.

Brayan Rocchio is another player who is being projected by default, as there is not another viable option on the roster currently, especially with Arias being at second base here. Ideally, there would be someone else with more offensive upside than Rocchio as an option, but there are not any options worthy of being considered to take his place.

Guardians lack length in their lineup

The biggest issue for the Guardians is that once you get past the first four batters in the lineup, there are not any consistent threats at the plate. Noel may be able to provide power from time to time, but there are signs that could indicate an offensive regression. Thomas is a very streaky hitter and is very prone to extended droughts at the plate.

Cleveland's final three batters seem poised to be an easy 1-2-3 for most opposing pitchers. Of the three, Naylor seems like the only one capable of not making that a reality, considering that Arias and Rocchio are both offensive black holes. Barring any additions to this group of players or an unforeseen uptick offensively, the bottom part of the Guardians' lineup could be a big problem and one that becomes evident rather quickly.