The Cleveland Guardians keep circling the same problem, and the trade deadline is now putting it in sharper focus: they need a right-handed bat.
That was the takeaway from MLB.com insider Tim Stebbins, who pointed to Cleveland’s “biggest need” as the club heads toward the deadline. The fit is obvious enough. The Guardians have been trying to patch together the middle of the order without ever landing the power presence that was missing at the end of last season, and they never really addressed it over the offseason either.
“Guardians: Right-handed bat,” Stebbins wrote. “Jose Ramirez (left hamate fracture) and Angel Martinez (non-displaced left foot fracture) will provide a boost when they return from the injured list in the coming weeks, but acquiring a hitter could augment things further - including if they bat right-handed.
Gabriel Arias, David Fry, Austin Hedges and Rhys Hoskins are the only players on the Guardians’ active roster who exclusively bat from that side. Ramirez, Martinez, Patrick Bailey and Brayan Rocchio are switch-hitters.”
That shortage has become even more glaring with injuries thinning out the lineup. Cleveland went into 2026 hoping for internal growth from several hitters, but some of those expected jumps never came. Instead, a few players slipped backward, and then the injury bug took three of the team’s better bats out of the mix.
There is at least some reason for optimism on the roster. Rookie Chase DeLauter has been scorching since coming back from the injured list, and Travis Bazzana has earned a spot on the AL All-Star team. Martinez and Rocchio have also given the Guardians real production at the plate, which has helped offset disappointing seasons from Bo Naylor and Kyle Manzardo.
Even so, the lineup still feels incomplete. Jose Ramirez was already running a little below his usual level before his injury, and Steven Kwan is in the midst of the worst offensive season of his MLB career.
One name that has come up is Christian Walker, if the Houston Astros decide to make the first baseman available. Walker, a right-handed hitter, has 20 home runs this season. But Houston has played its way back into contention in the AL West, so there’s no guarantee he actually reaches the market.
For now, the Guardians are left with the same question they started the year with: whether they’ll finally add the power bat they’ve needed all along.
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