1 MLB player Guardians must trade before deadline

Arias is an especially interesting player. At just 26-year-old, he features an intriguing ceiling and overall high potential. The talent is unquestionably present with Arias.

Not only has he failed to find consistent success at the MLB level, however, Arias often makes lackluster plays and mental mistakes during games. He sometimes appears to give a lack of effort as well. Sunday’s 7-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates saw Arias make multiple mistakes, including failing to cover third base on a (seemingly) designed snap throw from catcher Patrick Bailey that led to a run scoring. Pittsburgh took a 3-1 lead after the play and never looked back.

If you check out Guardians Twitter (X), you will find many fans calling for Cleveland to designate Arias for assignment. Fans’ frustration is understandable, but Arias’ age and ceiling makes such a move risky, especially for a Guards ball club that desperately needs all of the offense it can get.

When Arias hits the baseball — which admittedly is rare given his alarming 42.9 strikeout rate — he often crushes it. He currently holds a 50.9 percent hard-hit rate. The Guardians simply cannot afford to DFA a player who hits the ball that hard right now.

Keeping Arias may also be a mistake, though. The mental mistakes not only have led to defeats at times, but they also take momentum away from the Guards. Travis Bazzana hit a walk-off home run on Saturday night and it seemed as if Cleveland was on the verge of going on a winning streak given the momentum boost. Arias’ mistakes (and other Guardians players’ mistakes to be fair) on Sunday removed any momentum and led to a loss.

Additionally, Arias will end up playing in a backup infield role once Ramirez returns from injury. Ramirez is of course the third baseman. Meanwhile, Brayan Rocchio has taken over shortstop duties while Bazzana is now the second baseman.

One has to imagine that at least some contenders around the MLB world would have interest in acquiring Arias given his ceiling. He could be included in a trade package as the Guards look to address other areas of the roster.

What Cleveland needs at trade deadline

The Guardians could use a boost in the outfield, but first base/designated hitter has been especially questionable. The first base platoon of Kyle Manzardo and Rhys Hoskins simply is not getting the job done. Cleveland should certainly monitor the first base market.

While the starting rotation has been strong, Cleveland’s often reliable bullpen has been inconsistent this year. Bringing in a high leverage reliever would be a quality move.

A trade package of Arias and prospects would catch the attention of many teams around the league. Cleveland features a talented farm system, so the ball club is in a good position to buy before the trade deadline.

There is always the chance that Arias finally figures things out and limits the mistakes with another team. Trading him, as opposed to simply designating him for assignment or outright releasing him, makes the risk of moving on from Arias much more defensible.