Andrés Giménez took a step back in many areas of his game after a breakout 2022 season. His 2023 campaign was full of a lot of weak contact and disappointment at the plate.
However, he may be in store for a bounceback season with the Cleveland Guardians.
Welcome to Giménez's "Guardians Player Profile" heading into the 2024 season. This compiles projections from both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference to give fans an idea of how different models are viewing Cleveland's second baseman for this year.
Andres Gimenez 2024 Projections
| AVG | OBP | SLG | WRC+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2023 Stats |
.251 |
.314 |
.399 |
97 |
2024 FanGraphs ZIPS |
.272 |
.339 |
.424 |
113 |
2024 Baseball Ref Projections |
.270 |
.338 |
.429 |
N/A |
While each model slightly varies, it's clear that they both vote in favor of Giménez returning to form in 2024. The biggest area that they predict him to bounce back in is his power, and we sure know the Guardians need more of that.
One of Gimenez's biggest problems last season was his BABIP, which dropped to .289 by the end of the season. FanGraphs is predicting this to recover to .316 for next season, which is much closer to his .353 mark from 2022.
Giménez was still a very disciplined hitter, even with all of the struggles he faced at the plate. So, if his intelligent plate presence continues and he starts to make hard contact again, there's no reason to think any of these numbers are unrealistic.
This is what happened in the final month of the season, when Giménez slashed .333/.369/.490 with an .859 OPS. This showed the organization, fans, and himself that the version of Giménez who posted a wRC+ of 142 two seasons ago is still in there.
There's not a lot to say here in teams of his defense. Giménez won his second Gold Glove and first Platinum Glove following the 2023 season. He's one of, if not the best, defensive infielder in the game, and there's not a reason to think that won't be the same in 2024.
The 2022 season was special for Giménez, and he may never replicate it at the plate. However, the Guardians will be in a tremendous position if he can live up to these projections.
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