‘He wants to be great’: Ortiz settling in with Guards
SURPRISE, Ariz. — Among manager Stephen Vogt’s impressions of Luis Ortiz this spring is how much fun the right-hander is to be around.
“He’s always smiling,” Vogt said. “He’s always happy. He wants to be great.”
Spring Training has been an opportune time for the Guardians to get to know Ortiz, and vice versa. The 26-year-old is entering his first season with Cleveland after the club acquired him from the Pirates in December in one of the organization’s biggest offseason additions.
That get-to-know you period, of course, extends beyond a personal basis. This spring is the first opportunity the Guardians and Ortiz have had to work up-close together since he joined Cleveland before the new year.
“I feel so far, we’ve got good results from working with the staff,” Ortiz said through interpreter Agustin Rivero. “It’s working really well so far, and it’s really important for us to continue that way. … The key is not only what happens in the game, but what we’ve been doing even between the games and the work that we put in during the week as well. It’s been really productive as well.”
Ortiz is a good example of why Spring Training is about more than what you can see in a box score. Yes, every player would be happy to have great numbers over the six weeks of Cactus League play. But camp is, more importantly, an opportunity for players to work on their craft in a controlled environment before the regular season.
And for Ortiz, that process this year has come while getting to know a new manager, a new coaching staff and a new clubhouse of teammates.
“And now, I think we’ve gotten through that period,” team president Chris Antonetti said recently, “and are at a point where we’re actually able to start making some real developmental progress in some of the high leverage things he can be working on.”
Ortiz, who posted a 3.32 ERA in 37 games (15 starts) for the Pirates last season, features a four-seam fastball, a slider, a sinker and a cutter. When he’s attacking the zone with that mix of power stuff, he’s hard to hit. Cleveland saw it firsthand last season; Ortiz held them to one hit in six scoreless innings on Aug. 31.
He made his fifth start of the spring on Tuesday, a 7-3 loss against the Rangers. After issuing a pair of first-inning walks to Marcus Semien and Wyatt Langford and a single to Joc Pederson, Ortiz surrendered a three-run double to Adolis García.
The Guardians went to reliever Allan Hernandez to finish the first inning, but Ortiz reentered in the second. In total, he was charged with four runs on two hits and six walks in four innings.
“When he’s attacking the zone, we see that the stuff plays,” Vogt said after the outing. “He had quite a few walks tonight. So it’s just continuing to work and getting more consistent with the delivery and being able to pound the zone.
“Because when we see him in the zone, we see what he can do. And that’s to be an elite pitcher.”
For as much success as Ortiz had last season, he’s still short on experience as a Major League pitcher. He’s made 59 appearances (34 starts) since debuting on Sept. 13, 2022.
“It’s [about] continuing to help him learn how to be a Major League starter, learn how to go about his business,” Vogt said. “But he’s so hungry to get better every single day, and he’s just fun to be around.”
Worth noting
• Non-roster invitee Vince Velasquez made his first Cactus League appearance since March 2 on Tuesday. Velasquez, who was briefly sidelined due to an illness, threw a scoreless eighth inning with one walk and one strikeout.
Velasquez could factor into the Opening Day bullpen as a veteran capable of going multiple innings.
“Really like what we saw from Vince,” Vogt said. “It’s good to see him back out on the mound.”
• The Guardians reduced their spring roster to 44 players on Tuesday after reassigning five players to Minor League camp: infielders Dayan Frias, Milan Tolentino, Yordys Valdes, catcher Kody Huff and outfielder Kahlil Watson. They must make 18 more cuts before Opening Day next Thursday.