Guardians Must Help This Star Find More Consistency

The Cleveland Guardians front office admits they must help Andres Gimenez find more consistency at the plate.

Aug 9, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez (0) looks on during the ninth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Johnson-Imagn Images / Jordan Johnson-Imagn Images

Andres Gimenez is a cornerstone of the Cleveland Guardians' future. The front office made that clear following the 2022 season when they signed him to a $106.5 million extension, which will keep him under team control through the 2030 season.

However, Gimenez has struggled to find consistency at the plate since the contract, hitting a combined .252/.306/.328 with an OPS+ of 89 during the 2023-24 seasons.

At his best, Gimenez has hit second in the lineup behind Steven Kwan and in front of Jose Ramirez. He's primarily a contact hitter and can get on base because of well-placed base hits.

May 22, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez (0) celebrates after hitting a three run home run during the sixth inning against the New York Mets at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

However, when the second baseman struggles at the plate, he makes weak contact, pulls balls, and is overly aggressive, resulting in many swings and misses.

President of baseball operations, Chris Antonetti, admitted during his end-of-season media availability that helping Gimenez find a consistent rhythm at the plate is something the organization needs to do with him this offseason.

"I think the one area we want to continue to partner with Andres on is how we can help him be more consistent offensively," said Antonetti. "We've seen glimmers of that throughout the course of the last three seasons, but it has not been as consistent as he'd like recently. So that'll be a big focal point for him, and our coaching staff going into the offseason is supporting Andres and trying to work towards being a more offensive player."

Gimenez is going to be a Guardian for a long time and already brings a lot to the team because of his elite defense. However, if he can find a rhythm at the plate, he can get back to being an All-Star caliber player as he was in 2022.