The outfield has been a weak spot for the Cleveland Guardians for the last few seasons. None of the candidates have been overwhelmingly impressive through the first week of spring training.
Expect Chase DeLauter, Cleveland's fourth-ranked prospect per MLB Pipeline.
Now, DeLauter was the organization's first overall pick in the 2022 draft. Typically, Cleveland plays it safe with their highly-ranked prospects and lets them develop in the minor leagues for a few years at the minimum. However, that may not be the case for Chase.
In a recent article, ESPN's Jeff Passan said that DeLauter is in play to be the starting right fielder for the Guardians on Opening Day.
"Cleveland's outfield has long been the weakest part of a strong organization, and 6-4, 235-pound DeLauter - whose follow-through-free left-handed swing still manages to generate immense power - could find himself locking down the Guardians' right-field job as soon as Opening Day." - ESPN' Jeff Passan.
No one will deny that it would be awesome to see DeLauter in the Opening Day lineup in Oakland. He's the future of this organization and he's played like it so far during spring training. DeLauter has 4-for-8 including a home run and a double in the five games he's played in.
However, there are still other factors we have to consider here.
Stephen Vogt said late last week that DeLuater "will impact the roster at some point." But he went on to say he's not sure when that would be. He's spent a lot more time talking about the opportunities Tyler Freeman, Enyel De Los Santos, Johnathan Rodriguez, and Jhonkeny Noel will get in the outfield.
There also shouldn't be any reason to rush DeLauter due to his injury history. As said previously, he's the future of the team but he has to be healthy for that to come to fruition.
Passan still seems to believe there's a chance DeLauter is at the major league level sooner than later.
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