CLEVELAND -- Gabriel Arias landed on the 10-day injured list on Tuesday with a moderate left hamstring strain, which is expected to sideline the Guardians’ shortstop for “a little while,” manager Stephen Vogt said.
Arias suffered the injury in the fifth inning of Monday’s 4-2 loss to the Royals at Progressive Field. The 26-year-old hit a double to right field and pulled up as he reached second base, at which point he hunched over and grabbed the back of his left leg.
“He's in a lot of pain, not moving around great,” Vogt said Tuesday morning. “So we feel for Gabby. That was unfortunate.”
The Guardians recalled Juan Brito (who’s ranked their No. 16 prospect by MLB Pipeline) from Triple-A Columbus in a corresponding move on Tuesday. The 24-year-old was in the starting lineup, hitting sixth and playing second base, for his MLB debut.
The timing of Arias’ injury is unfortunate, given he was trending well offensively after a bit of a slow start to the season. Arias hit .200 (6-for-30) over his first 10 games, though he logged a hit in four of his past five contests and at least one RBI in three of those games.
Arias tallied two RBIs in Game 2 of Sunday’s doubleheader against the Cubs, including one on a go-ahead single in the eighth inning of the 6-5 victory.
“You never want anyone to get hurt,” Vogt said. “But just as he's kind of catching his offensive stride, it just comes at an unfortunate time.”
The Guardians expect to have a further update Wednesday on the next steps for Arias and his return-to-play timeline. What we know is Brayan Rocchio will slide over to shortstop in his stead, and Daniel Schneemann stands as a secondary option there.
Rocchio is a natural shortstop and was an AL Gold Glove Award finalist there in 2024. He was Cleveland’s Opening Day shortstop in ‘25, but was optioned to Columbus on May 12 following a slow start offensively. Arias supplanted him at shortstop, and Rocchio ultimately slid over to second following his return to the Majors in July.
Rocchio made 12 starts at second base this spring and four at shortstop.
“Brayan is ready to go,” Vogt said.
Brito would have likely made his MLB debut this past season, but he was limited to 31 games due to injuries. The 24-year-old underwent surgery for a right thumb sprain on April 25 and did not rejoin Columbus until June 25. He made eight appearances upon returning, through July 4, before he suffered a left hamstring avulsion. It led to him undergoing season-ending surgery in September.
Brito was in the mix for a spot on Cleveland’s Opening Day roster this spring but was optioned to Columbus on March 19.
“We are thrilled for Juan,” Vogt said. “We've been excited about Juan for a really long time. ... We just couldn't be more excited.”
Through nine games with the Clippers, Brito was slashing .314/.405/.457, and five of his 11 hits went for doubles. The Guardians have long been intrigued by his profile offensively, as a switch-hitter who has a blend of power and plate discipline.
In 144 games with Columbus in 2024, Brito slashed .256/.365/.443 with 40 doubles, 21 home runs, 84 RBIs and 88 walks with 105 strikeouts.
Brito made six starts at third with Columbus this season, two at first and one at second. He has seen his most time at second over parts of seven Minor League seasons (309 appearances), and has also played shortstop and right field. The Guardians placed an emphasis on him working on his versatility when they optioned him to the Clippers this spring.
Cleveland knows it can move Brito around, but for now he’ll play “a lot of second base,” Vogt said.
Bazzana is trending toward making his big league debut this season. Given Brito is on the 40-man roster, calling him up was an organic lever for the Guardians to pull after Arias went down.
“There's always thought,” Vogt said when asked if there was thought to promoting Bazzana. “But we've been excited about Juan for a long time. This is about Juan Brito. Travis is going to help us win a lot of games. But this is Juan Brito’s turn.”