![\"Akron](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/7XRYYQP2PZD7NNZGHPAMNU2UWI.JPG\")
Akron RubberDucks second baseman Travis Bazzana talks to the media during media day last year in Akron.Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com1. On 2024 No. 1 pick Travis Bazzana<\/p>\nAKRON, Ohio \u2013 Chris Antonetti, the Cleveland Guardians\u2019 president of baseball operations, served as an entertaining featured speaker at the Akron RubberDucks\u2019 Hot Stove Banquet on Friday night, but a 20-year-old college student in the audience briefly shared the limelight.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn 2022 and 2024 we had the youngest team in baseball each of those years,\u201d Antonetti said. \u201cAnd the only time in the last 30 years the youngest team has made the postseason.\u201d <\/p>\n
Both times it was the Guardians, he said.<\/p>\n
That led him to talk about the priority of player development the Guardians emphasize over flashy free-agent signings. He then threw out trivia, offering $20 to anyone who could get the answer to this:<\/p>\n
\u201cPrior to the 2022 baseball season what Major League free agents did the Cleveland Guardians sign?\u201d <\/p>\n
A hand went up. It was a University of Cincinnati student named Tommy Pecoraro, a Guardians fan from the Chagrin Falls area.<\/p>\n
\u201cBryan Shaw and Luke Maile.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTommy,\u201d Antonetti said, \u201cthat\u2019s impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n
(Same question for 2024: The team signed Austin Hedges and Ben Lively. No one got that one, though.)<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy am I bringing that up? Those are not the names everyone is talking about. Both 2022 and \u201924 we won the Central Division finding young players opportunities. In 2022, we chose not to sign the Eddie Rosarios of the year.\u201d<\/p>\n
More than 200 people braved single-digit temperatures and packed a ballroom at the Hilton Garden Inn Akron to hear Antonetti speak on a myriad of topics, including the team\u2019s second-half surge to win the American League Central.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had just lost our 10th game in a row and we were getting on a plane to go to Houston,\u201d he said. \u201cThat was one of those moments where the season could have taken an entirely different trajectory. Things didn\u2019t look good. Steven Vogt does such an extraordinary job of creating a great environment for the guys to show up and work every day. Obviously people were frustrated and disappointed, but if you were on that plane you wouldn\u2019t have any idea we were where we were.\u201d<\/p>\n
The message was clear: Show up, prepare, win tonight. The Guardians pivoted on that turning point. They made the postseason despite being 15.5 games out of first place.<\/p>\n
It took a specific mindset \u2013 \u201cWho are the guys we are going to get back to win a World Series in the future?\u201d<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cOur success has been not from the guys we brought in externally. It\u2019s been when the young players we have take that next step and fuel our development. This is not a question of (Guardians owner) Paul (Dolan) saying, \u2018Don\u2019t spend the money.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Going into the offseason the team is focused on adding depth to relief pitching, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a couple of guys, unforeseen, who are no longer pitching for us,\u201d he said referring to the gambling allegations regarding Emmanual Clase and Luis Ortiz.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe spend a lot of time debating external acquisitions,\u201d he said, with the question being: What is the opportunity cost? Which young players would have plate appearances taken away?<\/p>\n
Here are nine innings of highlights of Antonetti\u2019s question-and-answer talk:<\/p>\n
Akron RubberDucks second baseman Travis Bazzana talks to the media during media day last year in Akron.Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com1. On 2024 No. 1 pick Travis Bazzana<\/p>\n
Bazzana dealt with injuries for the first time.<\/p>\n
\u201cTravis has had a very good first year of development,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s helpful for us is those players, while they are in the minor leagues, experience adversity and then use that opportunity to build skills to navigate \u2026 and come out stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n
Last year, Bazzana had to build some of those skills, he added.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s \u201cfully healthy\u201d going into spring training and probably will start in the minors this season.<\/p>\n
![\"With](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/FFPX4M4MIZHYPBSWMLXCFMDCQA.jpeg\")
The Akron RubberDucks’ annual Hot Stove Banquet was held Friday night.Marc Bona, cleveland.com2. On the new ball-strike challenges<\/p>\n
This season, a ball-strike challenge will debut. Each team gets two challenges. Only the pitcher, batter or catcher can challenge, and it has to come immediately. If a team is right, they keep the challenge. Wrong, and they lose it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt does not interrupt the flow of the game at all,\u201d said Antonetti, who said the Guardians will not let pitchers challenge.<\/p>\n
\u201cTanner Bibee would be out of challenges on the first batter,\u201d he said to laughter.<\/p>\n
In spring training, Major League Baseball takes measurements of every position player. So the strike zone is customized. <\/p>\n
Related: Guardians see winning edge in mastering MLB\u2019s new ball-strike challenge system<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cManzardo has had a great offseason,\u201d he said. \u201cOne of the things we really challenged our guys in, is taking the next step in their physical developments. Kyle had an opportunity to get a little bit bigger, stronger and more agile. He\u2019s gained 13 pounds.\u201d He will be in the lineup regularly, as either designated hitter or at first base, he said.<\/p>\n He also told a great anecdote about Manzardo and technology called Trajekt, which can replicate a pitcher\u2019s velocity, spin profile and movement of a specific pitcher. Once, when Manzardo was getting ready to enter a game as a pinch hitter, he went into the cages and used the technology. He then walked to the plate and hit a home run. He yelled and credited Trajekt as he rounded the bases.<\/p>\n \u201cJos\u00e9 helps everybody. Jos\u00e9 helps me,\u201d said Antonetti, who recalled the Guardians\u2019 star\u2019s first game, as a pinch-runner on first base in 2013.<\/p>\n \u201cHe is like a third of the way down the baseline. Everybody in the dugout is, \u2018What are you doing, you\u2019re going to get picked off!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n He winds up leading off further, he steals second, advances to third and scores.<\/p>\n When he came in the dugout, then manager Terry Francona gave him a hard time.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know Jos\u00e9, you\u2019re not invisible out there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Ram\u00edrez responded: \u201cI was going to steal second base and score the tying run.\u201d<\/p>\n The confidence and mindset he had then, about helping the team, remains, Antonetti said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is the biggest drawback of Arizona, it\u2019s so much harder for fans to get there than it is to Florida. On the flip side, it has been such a massive help for us developmentally. The weather is more consistent, we spend a lot less time on buses in traffic.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAdmittedly,\u201d he added, \u201cIt\u2019s a bit of an inconvenience for those of us who live in Cleveland. It\u2019s not quite that easy to get there.\u201d<\/p>\n He likes the recent changes baseball has enacted but said, \u201cI\u2019m really reluctant to take away the history and fabric of the game,\u201d he said, referring to possibilities like a \u201cgolden batter\u201d rule. That idea would allow teams to select a player in their lineup to bat, regardless of the order, once in a game. \u201cThat to me really changes the way the game is played.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDavid Fry has been part of the fabric and glue of our clubhouse,\u201d he said. \u201cHe\u2019s one of those guys who is under the radar who has had a massive impact beyond the performance on the field.\u201d<\/p>\n The collective bargaining agreement runs through December.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s beyond that is really hard to predict,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m hopeful the two sides can reach an agreement. The encouraging thing is they have started dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n The banquet also served as a formal welcoming for Prospector Baseball Group\u2019s John Abbamondi and Ben Boyer, new owners of the RubberDucks. Former owner Ken Babby sold Akron and the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp when he became part of the Tampa Bay Rays ownership.<\/p>\n \u201cI am so excited John and Ben will be the ones taking over and leading this franchise moving forward,\u201d Antonetti said.<\/p>\n He added: \u201cA lot of our minor leagues have been pitching rich. I am not sure everyone knows this, but over the last 10 years Akron had the best record in the Eastern League.\u201d<\/p>\n Extra innings<\/p>\n \u2022 The \u201cvast majority\u201d of Progressive Field renovations have been completed, he said, with some work on the batting cages remaining.<\/p>\n \u2022 Could Carlos Santana (who also played in Akron) return? \u201cThere is a chance. I love Carlos. I think I prefer him to be back as a special assistant than having him occupying 500 plate appearances. \u2026 He\u2019s one of my personal favorites.\u201d Santana will be 40 this season.<\/p>\n \u2022 On the recent Hall of Fame vote – Andruw Jones (inducted) vs. Kenny Lofton (not in): \u201c(Jones) clearly belongs in the Hall of Fame, but it does feel as though Kenny hasn\u2019t gotten his due. If you look up and see \u2026 the impact he had the game – defensively, offensively on the bases – he was a force.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 On his favorite ballpark other than Progressive Field, Antonetti chose Boston\u2019s Fenway Park because of the history.<\/p>\n \u2022 On who he cheers for in the hot dog race: He sides with his daughters, who root for Onion.<\/p>\n Past Hot Stove Banquet speakers<\/p>\n 2025: Cade Smith<\/a><\/p>\n 2024: Mike and Sharon Hargrove<\/a><\/p>\n 2023: Triston McKenzie<\/a><\/p>\n 2022: Jim and Andrea Thome<\/a><\/p>\n 2020: ESPN\u2019s Tim Kurkjian<\/p>\n 2019: Corbin Bernsen (Roger Dorn in \u201cMajor League\u201d)<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Cleveland](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/OMZ4Y6TR3RGZZDAR5RVUKABZPM.JPG\")
Guardians first baseman Kyle Manzardo connects for a double against Texas last season.Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com3. On Kyle Manzardo<\/p>\n![\"Cleveland](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/TE66PFULEBBKLA7KANWSKLASZE.JPG\")
Guardians third base Jos\u00e9 Ram\u00edrez steals second during a Baltimore-Cleveland game last season.David Petkiewicz, cleveland.com4. On Jos\u00e9 Ram\u00edrez<\/p>\n![\"With](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/CNPOAJAGYBHJFKQTIUP2ZQBJXQ.jpeg\")
A C.C. Sabathia bobblehead and signed ball were part of a raffle package.Marc Bona, cleveland.com5. On spring training in Arizona vs. Florida<\/p>\n![\"With](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/75RCKHLU7VBPFBYAUFFLGKS4MA.jpeg\")
Centerpieces at the banquet had a distinctive baseball theme.Marc Bona, cleveland.com6. Changes in the game<\/p>\n![\"Cleveland](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ZGGU3JC4EBAV5D6YGIDZKH5TLY.JPG\")
Guardians designated hitter David Fry celebrates his RBI double in a game against Kansas City last year.John Kuntz, cleveland.com7. What player has good character and is good in the clubhouse? <\/p>\n![\"With](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/LS5TY2DOTJAJ7BRAHGYXONBPZM.jpeg\")
Various bobbleheads were part of the raffle packages.Marc Bona, cleveland.com8. About the possibility of a strike<\/p>\n![\"With](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2M3IZIS3FFEO7HSAO2EMMLFODA.jpeg\")
A silent auction is traditionally held at the Hot Stove Banquet to raise money for charity.Marc Bona, cleveland.com9. Welcome to Akron<\/p>\n