The Cleveland Guardians will take the field for the first time in 2026 on Thursday night against the Seattle Mariners. As the organization prepares for the new season, the front office has finalized the Opening Day roster on Wednesday.

The players who will be on the Guardians roster to begin the new year are:

Overall, there aren’t a ton of new surprises with this group. That said, here are some quick notes about who will be available for the Guardians against the Mariners and to begin the year. 

Austin Hedges was hit by a pitch on the hand on Monday in Cleveland’s exhibition match against the Arizona Diamondbacks, but Chris Antonetti said his X-Rays came back negative, and it’s considered a bone bruise at this point.

Even though CJ Kayfus is listed as an infielder, with first base being his natural position, he will likely see some time in the outfield, too. Especially with Kyle Manzardo and Rhys Hoskins both on the roster.

Perhaps the biggest decision Cleveland had to make leading up to Opening Day was determining who would be in the rotation. Stephen Vogt shared over the weekend that the final spot would be going to Parker Messick, and Logan Allen would begin the season at Triple-A.

The Guardians do have a couple of key players on the injured list, including George Valera and Hunter Gaddis. It’ll be interesting to see where they fit into the roster once they are healthy. 

Now that the Guardians have their Opening Day roster set, the next thing the front office must figure out is who will be in the lineup for the first game of the season.

As Vogt has said all spring long, even though it is an honor to be on the Opening Day roster, the team will end up using plenty more players throughout the year, and Cleveland has plenty of depth in the organization for moves to come.  

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