As Thanksgiving approaches, Valera thankful he never gave up

CLEVELAND -- “I’m going to show you what I was doing …” George Valera said one afternoon in late September, as he stood in front of his locker in the home clubhouse at Progressive Field. The Guardians’ outfielder then opened his phone and began swiping through photos.

Valera pulled up a picture taken almost exactly a year prior. He was laid up, and his right leg was in a brace. It was captured soon after he underwent surgery on Sept. 18, 2024, for a torn patellar tendon in his right knee.

The contrast of that image -- taken at a time when Valera couldn’t bend his leg -- and that moment this September reflected how far he had come. One year after suffering a devastating knee injury, he was in the big leagues contributing to the eventual AL Central champs.

“It was one of the craziest experiences in my life,” Valera said on that day in September. “One of the worst, but the best, because it taught me a lot about myself and my faith and what I could do, what I could get through.”

Valera will have an opportunity to further show what he can do in 2026. The 25-year-old will be in the mix for the Guardians’ Opening Day roster after he made a good first impression in the Majors (two homers, .748 OPS over 16 regular-season games) down the stretch this past season.

For now, at a time of year when reflection and gratitude are central themes, Valera’s journey quickly comes to mind.

“I learned that, if I really believe in something, I’m going to get it,” Valera said.

Valera injured his knee on Sept. 10, 2024, when he awkwardly crashed into the right-field wall tracking a fly ball while playing for Triple-A Columbus. It happened when he was one promotion away from the Majors, and it marked his latest moment of tough injury luck.

Valera (ranked as the Guardians’ No. 1 prospect by MLB Pipeline in 2022) missed about one month in ‘21 with a right oblique strain. He missed most of the first two months of ‘23 with a right wrist injury following offseason hamate cleanup surgery. A strained left hamstring in ‘24 delayed his season debut until May 1.

The knee injury was grueling. Valera couldn’t walk for two months after surgery. His parents stayed with him until he could do things on his own. They got him groceries and cooked for him, and for a time helped him shower.

“A lot of the things that I was doing, I don't know how I was going to do without them,” Valera said. “They were doing everything they could for me. That gave me fuel. It kind of made me feel a certain way, about how I can't give up.”

It could have been easy for Valera to get down on himself, but he didn’t lose heart. He maintained a wise perspective that he gained through his previous injury recoveries, remembering to take things one day at a time. As he put it, “When you think too far out in the future, everything starts piling up on you.”

While the Guardians designated Valera for assignment on Nov. 19 last offseason, it was only a procedural move. They re-signed him six days later on a Minor League deal with an invite to big league Spring Training. He attacked his rehab over the winter and progressed to throwing and hitting soft toss by February.

On May 15, Valera made his 2025 debut in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League. On June 3, he returned to Columbus’ lineup. On Sept. 1, the Guardians selected his contract from the Clippers, and he made his MLB debut that afternoon at Fenway Park. Valera drew a walk in his first plate appearance.

Valera hit his first career home run on Sept. 20 at Target Field against the Twins. He launched his first homer at Progressive Field four days later against the Tigers. The ballpark erupted as it cleared the right-center-field wall, as did Valera as he rounded first base.

By the time the postseason came around, Valera was hitting second in the Guardians’ lineup against right-handed starters. He launched a first-inning solo home run in Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series, which opened the scoring in Cleveland’s 6-1 win over Detroit.

Next season, he’ll look to build upon his first stint in the Majors, while carrying with him the knowledge and experience of what he has already overcome.

“That just showed me the type of person I was,” Valera said of his comeback from the knee injury. “I’m going to believe, no matter what.”