It's Time For The Guardians To Option Gabriel Arias Back To Triple-A

Gabriel Arias has fallen out of the Cleveland Guardians' lineups and could play every day with the Columbus Clippers.

On May 7, Terry Francona said that Cleveland Guardians needed to give Gabriel Arias more at-bats because of him being, "too important for our future." 

However, here we are on July 5 and that sporadic playing time for Arias has continued. The last time he started in a game was on June 25 against the Milwaukee Brewers in right field. We have to go all the way back to June 11 against the Houston Astros to find the last time he started in the infield, his natural position. 

We also have to be objective and admit that when Arias has played, he hasn't looked great at the plate. I do think it's a little unfair to take the stats at face value when he isn't playing every day, but they are what they are.

Arias is currently hitting .191/.321/.319 this season and only recorded seven hits in the month of June while striking out 15 times. 

A solution for all of this would be to send Arias back down to Triple-A if he's not going to play at the Major League level. It wouldn't be a demotion in the sense that he isn't good enough to be in the Big Leagues because we know he is. 

Instead, it would be an opportunity to give him the chance to play.

FIVE RUNS IN THE FIFTH 🔥

Gabriel Arias tattoos a two-run homer to left and the @CleGuardians lead it 11-7 over the O's. #ForTheLand | pic.twitter.com/hASx7006zB

— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) May 31, 2023

Plate appearances are increasingly more difficult to come by for young Guardians looking to make their mark. Will Brennan has established right field as his own, Amed Rosario turned it around on offense in the second half of June, and David Fry has swung the bat well recently as well. 

Arias is still just 23 years old and his raw talent is clearly there. He ranks in the 67th percentile in max exit velocity and has hit four home runs this season, three of them being 400+ feet. ]

He's also in the 58th percentile in OAA and 86th percentile in arm strength demonstrating his defensive ability too. 

Arias could still be a key piece of Cleveland's future like Tito said at the beginning of May, but that's not going to happen if he continues to watch games from the bench. Allowing Arias to play and hit every day with the Clippers could get his bat going and develop his game the same way it's done for Oscar Gonzalez.

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