BALTIMORE -- In just 16 games, 2025 is already remarkably brighter for Gabriel Arias than last year.
Arias eclipsed his home run total from 2024 (three) on Thursday, launching his fourth homer of the season to put the Guardians on the board in the top of the third inning of their 9-1 loss to the Orioles at Camden Yards.
What was supposed to be Arias¡¯ second full season in the Majors last year ended up being just 53 big league games after he struggled to deliver. So Cleveland sent him down to Triple-A Columbus to get more consistent at-bats and work on perfecting his approach.
Safe to say that decision -- and Arias¡¯ work -- paid off.
Arias¡¯ home run in Baltimore marked his third in his past five games. Already, he¡¯s off to such a solid start that the potential Cleveland saw is clearly being realized: He¡¯s got a strong arm, impressive range and, clearly, the ability to hit for power.
¡°Gabby Arias is one of the most talented baseball players in the world and we're getting to see it right now,¡± manager Stephen Vogt said. ¡°His at-bats, his at-bat quality, his defense, baserunning -- everything that Gabby's doing right now is where we want to keep him.
¡°It's been really fun to watch Gabby do what he's doing, and he hit that ball hard tonight.¡±
With a 108.9 mph exit velocity, that solo homer was Arias¡¯ third hardest-hit ball of the season, but his hardest that landed for a hit so far (a 109.7 groundout and a 109.3 mph GIDP). It¡¯s a small glimpse of the power that saw Arias in the top seven percent of MLBers when it came to max exit velo (114.1 mph) in his breakout 2023 campaign.
Part of Arias¡¯ sort of ¡°return to form¡± has come from a change in approach -- less ¡°timid¡± -- but also to his development as a person.
¡°The adjustments are one thing, but for me, most importantly, is the maturity and the mindset during the game,¡± Arias said via team interpreter Agustin Rivero. ¡°I feet like a complete different Gabriel Arias, I'm able to showcase in the field and it allows me to stay in the game regardless of the outcome. So, I'm able to perform my type of play, my style of game, regardless of the results, whether I'm getting good results or not, and I think that's what allows me to be a better player on a daily basis.¡±
The results did come on Thursday, though, and not only did Arias crush his homer 424 feet -- tied for fifth-longest of his career -- but he also made a pair of slick plays early to give starter Gavin Williams some room to work.
There was Arias¡¯ leaping snag in the first inning to keep Baltimore catcher Adley Rutschman off the bases, in which the shortstop caught some serious air. And then four innings later, it was another Rutschman knock that Arias smoothly fielded just behind second base, took his time setting his feet, then threw to first for the final out of a 1-2-3 frame.
Arias did give the Guardians a small scare in the bottom of the eighth inning, when he was spiked on the outside of his left ankle/foot while covering second base. That didn¡¯t faze him, though, and he stepped to the plate in the top of the ninth -- though he struck out.
¡°Just thank God for keeping me healthy all this time, to be able to have enough time to see the results of all the work that we've been doing,¡± Arias said. ¡°And also kudos to the hitting coaches, because they stuck with me through this whole process, and it seems like the adjustments have paid off a little bit.¡±