The Cleveland Guardians are excited to see what George Valera can do in the outfield during spring training.
The only thing that has held George Valera back from being a key contributor on the Cleveland Guardians big-league roster has been all of the injuries he’s faced throughout his Minor League career. Valera has missed time due to a knee injury, multiple hand injuries, oblique injuries, and hamstring strains, just to name a few.
The good news is right now, those injuries are behind him, and the Guardians are getting a healthy version of Valera at the beginning of spring training.
Last year, Valera didn’t even get a chance to be with the Guardians during their slate of Cactus League games because he was still rehabbing from a major knee injury that he suffered at the tail end of the 2024 season that required surgery to heal.
Cleveland is well aware of what Valera can do when he’s in the batter’s box, but Stephen Vogt is excited watch what he can do in the outfield with that knee injury behind him.
“We're really excited to see George run around. He's looked great in practice. He has the confidence to stop, which is what he did not have last year,” Vogt said. “Watching him take his reps and watching him do his outfield work, he looks great, or he's going to get a lot of outfield time.”
Oct 1, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians outfielder George Valera (35) fields a double hit by Detroit Tigers outfielder Riley Greene (31) in the fourth inning during game two of the Wildcard round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn ImagesValera said himself last week that he’s happy this year he’s able to participate in all the normal practices and workouts the team is doing, and not spend so much time in the training room rehabbing.
Valera will likely see most of his playing time in right field, but Vogt did note that he could see some time in left field this spring with Steven Kwan shifting over to center field at times over the next month.
Valera has never been known as a great defender, but Cleveland needs to find a way to get his bat in the lineup. In a small sample size at the end of last season, Valera logged a .748 OPS, including two home runs, with an average exit velocity of 91.1 mph in his first 48 MLB plate appearances.
As the Guardians look to give every player ample opportunities and time in the outfield, it’ll be interesting to see how much and where Valera plays on the field.
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