Cleveland Indians: 5 Tribe stocks that are booming in Spring Training

1. Andres Gimenez

I’ve been advocating Gimenez as 2021 starter ever since the Francisco Lindor trade was complete–and the 22-year-old isn’t letting me down. According to Cleveland.com’s Terry Pluto, Gimenez is the name he keeps hearing about from people associated with the club.

The stats don’t matter at this point, but he’s 4-of-10 with a homer and a 1.300 OPS. More importantly, he’s showing out as in the field. Having a strong defensive shortstop can mask a lot of warts. So far, Gimenez is making all the plays.

Gimenez’s main competition is Amed Rosario, who’s also off to a 3-of-8 start (.875 OPS).

The reason why Gimenez should have the leg up is defense. That’s why the Mets brought him up last season, despite the fact he didn’t play a lick at Triple A. Rosario doesn’t seem as reliable right now.

The Indians believe he ready to play in the majors and he should be the everyday shortstop unless he just flames out over the remaining three weeks. If he keeps playing well and is sent down, it’s nothing more than the front office manipulating his service time, and yeah, we should all be ticked.