Versatile Daniel Schneemann A Huge Part Of Cleveland Guardians Success

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – SEPTEMBER 20: Daniel Schneemann #10 of the Cleveland Guardians rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against the Minnesota Twins in the fifth inning of game one of a doubleheader at Target Field on September 20, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

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The Cleveland Guardians are fortunate to have a true “Swiss Army Knife” player on their major league roster.

Left-handed hitting Daniel Schneemann, 28, has offered the Guardians tremendous defense, playing all over the diamond for Cleveland.

Schneemann is an outstanding defensive player, no matter where Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt deploys him.

So far in the 2025 season, Schneemann has played second base, shortstop, third base, left field, center field, and right field.

And he has played them all with outstanding results. He has made two errors in 392 opportunities to handle the ball.

As a bonus, Schneemann has had some very timely hits, driving in crucial runs.

His single against Detroit Tigers reliever Kyle Finnegan as a pinch-hitter in the 7th inning, gave the Guardians a tremendous cushion in their September 23 victory against the Detroit Tigers.

There were two outs, with runners on second and third when Schneemann came to the plate.

The Guardians were holding a very narrow 3-2 lead, with some big Tigers hitters looming for the remaining two innings.

Schneemann worked the count to 2-2, and after spoiling a pitch with a foul ball, he smoked a Finnegan 88.7 miles per hour splitter up the middle.

Both runners scored, moving the game further out of the reach of the Tigers.

Of significance to this old scout was the confidence Vogt has in Schneemann.

Schneemann pinch-hit for Angel Martinez, who is a switch-hitter.

Martinez is a far better hitter from the left side of the plate, which is where he would have been hitting against Finnegan.

Still, Vogt went to Schneemann, in a move that paid dividends, and sent the game out of reach for Detroit.

In that game, Cleveland entered the evening one game behind the Tigers in the American League Central Division.

The Cleveland win meant a tie in the division, with both the Tigers and Guardians playing five more games this season.

Schneemann’s single up the middle was the final knockout punch for the first game in a three-game Guardians vs. Tigers series. It sent the Tigers to their seventh consecutive loss.

The Guardians home crowd of 29,571 erupted with every significant play in the game. However, when Schneemann delivered his massive pinch-hit single, Progressive Field was so loud it seemed the stadium was shaking.

About Daniel Schneemann:

The (then) Cleveland Indians drafted Schneemann in the 33rd round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft, out of Brigham Young University.

Schneemann played parts of three seasons for Brigham Young, hitting .288/.343/.369/.713, with five home runs and 76 RBIs in 638 plate appearances.

Defensively, Schneemann played second base, and third base in college.

Schneemann didn’t play in the outfield until he played in the Arizona Rookie League in 2018. He got many more outfield opportunities as his minor league development program progressed in the Cleveland farm system.

Never really considered a top Cleveland prospect, Schneemann worked extremely hard on all aspects of his game, and he began to show his versatility and promise at the Guardians Triple-A Columbus affiliate.

It was 2024 Guardians spring training in Goodyear, Arizona, when Schneemann made the Guardians and scouts ( like this writer) sit up in our seats.

Schneemann was spraying the ball all over the field, hitting sharp line-drive darts, and making solid barrel contact.

Defensively, he flashed outstanding range, and very solid arm strength from every position he played.

This old scout became a believer in Daniel Schneemann when watching him play effortless defense at shortstop.

At the time, this writer was singing the praises of Daniel Schneemann to anyone in the Guardians organization willing to listen.

Schneemann forced himself on to the Guardians 26-man 2024 big league roster with his bat, his glove, and yes, his speed on the bases.

The rest, as they say, is history.

The soft-spoken Daniel Schneemann, the guy with the big smile, and the tremendous athletic skills, is now a Cleveland Guardians fixture.

Playing wherever his manager needs him, Daniel Schneemann is a big reason the Cleveland Guardians are within striking distance of the American League Central Division Championship.

Here is this old scout’s June 2024 scouting report on Daniel Schneemann:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/berniepleskoff/2024/06/06/major-league-scouting-report-cleveland-guardians-daniel-schneemann