Gabriel

Arias

Arias has been on the shelf working his way back from a hamstring strain since early April. The 26-year-old middle infielder is going to need at least a handful of rehab contests to get back up to speed following the lengthy layoff. He should make it back to Cleveland by mid-June.

This is procedural, as Arias has been out since April 7. Arias would be eligible to return in a week, but in an earlier update this morning we noted that Guardians manager Steven Vogt indicated he’d be out longer than this and has yet to begun a ramp-up. His timeline probably is going to be closer to late June or early July at this point.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt indicated earlier this month that Arias was going to be out longer than the original 4-8 week timeline from the club after hitting the shelf with a hamstring strain back in early April. He’s going to need at least a couple weeks to ramp up physical activity before he’s cleared for an extended rehab assignment given the lengthy layoff.

It’s unclear exactly what that entails, but Vogt noted that Arias is going to be sidelined a bit longer than his original estimate of 4-to-8 weeks. The 26-year-old infielder has been shelved since April 9.

Arias left Monday’s game with the injury and was put on the injured list on Tuesday. The Guardians updated his timeline on Wednesday after further evaluation, and it will be a long absence for the 26-year-old. Juan Brito will continue to start in the middle infield in Arias’ place.

It’s unfortunate timing for Arias, who was 3-for-6 with a double and two RBI in the two games right before getting hurt on Monday night. There is no set timeline for his return, but soft tissue injuries can take a few weeks to heal, so the Guardians will hope to get him back at some point before the end of the month.

Arias was lifted for a pinch-runner following a fifth-inning double where he appeared to suffer the injury. The 26-year-old infielder was 1-for-2 prior to exiting and was replaced by Daniel Schneemann at shortstop. There should be an update on his status prior to Tuesday’s game after he undergoes further evaluation and testing.

The 33-year-old slugger is expected to be a regular against left-handed pitching for the Guardians, but he’s in there against a right-hander as well on Opening night. If he’s able to stay healthy and regain his power stroke, he could wind up providing some mixed league viability. Here’s the full lineup that manager Stephen Vogt will use against Logan Gilbert and the M’s on Thursday: Steven Kwan (LF), Chase DeLauter (RF), Jose Ramirez (3B), Kyle Manzardo (DH), Bo Naylor (C), Rhys Hoskins (1B), Daniel Schneemann (CF), Gabriel Arias (SS) and Brayan Rocchio (2B).

His two hits left the bat at 113 and 109 mph. The Guardians still haven’t used Arias anywhere other than short this spring, even though they indicated months ago that the plan was to treat him as more of a utilityman. It’s good news for his chances of lasting as a regular that he’s ahead of Brayan Rocchio on the depth chart defensively. Rocchio is seemingly going to start at second base initially, but one imagines Travis Bazzana will get a chance there sometime this summer. Arias still seems like a poor bet offensively and should lack value outside of deep AL-only leagues.

The double was a fly to right that Nelson Rada misplayed due to some combination of the sun and wind. Arias will take it, though. He’s now 4-for-12 this spring. Interestingly, all of his starts have come at shortstop so far. Manager Stephen Vogt said back in December that Brayan Rocchio would return to shortstop this year and Arias would be treated more of a utilityman, but so far, it’s Rocchio splitting time between second and short.