Manzardo enjoying noticeable defensive turnaround at 1B

This story was excerpted from Tim Stebbins’ Guardians Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

WEST SACRAMENTO -- As Kyle Manzardo works to get into a rhythm offensively amid an up-and-down start to the season, the 25-year-old continues to stand out for his work at first base.

More specifically, Manzardo is standing out for the strides he’s made in the field since 2025.

“I’m in a much better spot over there [this season], I think,” Manzardo said. “Just putting myself in a better position to make plays. I’m feeling good over there.”

Manzardo made 56 appearances (including 53 starts) at first base in 2025, both of which ranked second on the Guardians behind Carlos Santana (96 appearances, 92 starts). He did not grade too highly in metrics such as Outs Above Average (-3), Runs Prevented (-2) and Fielding Run Value (-2), the latter of which is Statcast’s catch-all metric to grade a fielder's performance.

Manzardo has enjoyed a noticeable turnaround so far in 2026. He entered Saturday with +1 Outs Above Average, +1 Runs Prevented and +1 in Fielding Run Value. Beyond the metrics, the eye test tells you he’s moving more athletically at first. He’s also routinely digging low throws out of the dirt -- and while that isn’t reflected in a first baseman’s metrics, it speaks to the overall point.

“I just see a confident kid over there,” manager Stephen Vogt said. “He's picking throws, he's making plays. It's been really fun to watch that.”

Manzardo worked extensively on his fielding during the offseason, after Cleveland’s brass told him to physically prepare his body to play the position four to five times per week. The thinking was the more he plays first, the more flexibility the Guardians would have using the DH spot.

Manzardo said he worked on his fielding nearly every day, whether it was glovework or getting his feet moving around the bag. Other than spending Thanksgiving and Christmas at home in Idaho, he trained at Cleveland's Arizona complex for the bulk of the offseason.

“[The motivation was] just wanting to get better, man,” Manzardo said. “Wanting to get better over there, wanting to be able to pick my teammates up, stuff like that.”

We saw one example in the Guardians’ 8-5 win over the A’s on Friday. José Ramírez knocked down a Brent Rooker line drive in the third inning. He corralled the ball and fired a low throw to Manzardo, who dug it out to end the inning.

Manzardo noted he tries to take ground balls and reps pregame as close to game speed as possible. Friday, he did several rounds of fielding grounders and flipping underhand throws to Cade Smith covering the bag. Coincidentally, Smith and Manzardo executed that play to finish off Friday's win.

Manzardo was not in the starting lineup on Saturday, but he was out on the field pregame taking reps on a ground-ball machine. As Guardians third-base and infield coach Rouglas Odor noted, the consistency of Manzardo’s routines since Spring Training is shining through.

“He has come a long way, and he knows that there is no shortcut,” Odor said. “There is not a magic pill. You just have to work. You have to put in your time to work. Work is paying off for him. I'm so proud of him. He's putting in his time, and he's having a lot of success right now.”

Entering Saturday, Manzardo had a .178/.265/.233 slash line, with two doubles, one home run, seven RBIs and nine walks with 35 strikeouts over 29 games. He had a bit of a production uptick over his past 15 games (.578 OPS in 53 plate appearances) compared to his first 14 (.411 in 49 plate appearances). But he, of course, isn’t where he wants to be or where the Guardians need to be yet.

The Guardians know what Manzardo is capable of at the plate. We saw it on Saturday, when he belted a pinch-hit three-run homer in the eighth inning. He’s showing what he can do with his glove, and knows there’s a long season ahead to turn the tide at the plate.

“Obviously, I know what the scoreboard looks like. I also know that it's not gonna look like that at the end of the year,” Manzardo said of his numbers. “So just staying diligent, trying to just take it one day at a time right now and take quality at-bats.”