Brayan Rocchio

Arias is batting .278/.361/.492 in 144 plate appearances. It was recently put out there that the Guardians intend to move Brayan Rocchio back to short next season. Arias started at that spot after Rocchio was sent down last summer and kept it for the rest of the season, with Rocchio finishing up at second base. Arias, though, didn't excel in hitting .220/.274/.363 in 471 plate appearances. He's out of options, so he should be guaranteed a roster spot. However, he's probably looking at a reduced role as a utilityman.

Brito's case was pretty obvious, but this is actually a second straight extra option year for Valera. He never used one in 2025, though, since the Guardians non-tendered him and then re-signed him to a minor league contract. He finally made his major league debut in September and performed well enough overall to keep himself in the Guardians' plans for 2026. However, now there's no pressure on the team to save room for him on the Opening Day roster. The Guardians will still have Nolan Jones, Jhonkensy Noel, Brayan Rocchio and Gilbert Arias as out-of-options players, which could make it more difficult for C.J. Kayfus, Angel Martinez and maybe Daniel Schneeman to make the team, depending on how the rest of the offseason goes.

That's probably the right plan. Rocchio played second, with Arias at short, after returning from the minors last July. Arias, though, just hasn't looked like a big-league regular, and while Rocchio still has much to prove, too, he's the more intriguing player at this point. The news suggests the Guardians could aim for a stopgap in second while waiting on 2024 first overall pick Travis Bazzana. Or perhaps Bazzana could have a shot of winning the job in spring training, even if his participation for Team Australia in the WBC probably won't help there.