Cleveland Sports Forum

Some cite is posting the "5 greatest players" for every franchise. For Cleveland they suggest:

Jim Thome — Bob Feller — Omar Vizquel — Nap Lajoie — Bob Lemon

No Gomer Hodge? Immortal Joe Azcue? Uncle Al and nephew Jordan Luplow? 0 for April Richie Scheinblum?

Would like to see Thome replaced.

choose any among:

Tris Speaker Lou Boudreau Earl Averill Al Rosen Stan Coveleskie

Either Boudreau or Rosen.

Jon Heyman
@JonHeyman

Abreu Astros deal expected to be 3 years, about $20M per
@Chandler_Rome
on it

He's getting old [35], but perhaps has 3 good years, maybe

Hard to believe he got 20 million a year.

Good thing Antonetti has figured out that up-and-coming kids are just as good as over-the-hill vets.

And cheaper....a lot cheaper!

Reds Sign Luke Maile
By Anthony Franco | November 28, 2022 at 6:29pm CDT

6:29pm: It’s a $1.175MM guarantee, reports Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer. There’s an additional $25K bonus attainable if Maile appears in 80 games next season.

Guardians miss out on first baseman Jose Abreu; offered three-year deal

Updated: Nov. 28, 2022, 5:03 p.m.|Published: Nov. 28, 2022, 4:45 p.m.


By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com


CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Free agent Jose Abreu would have been a good fit for the Guardians, but the power-hitting first baseman won’t be wearing a Cleveland uniform in 2023.

Despite the Guardians offering Abreu a three-year deal, the former Chicago White Sox first baseman-DH has agreed to a three-year contract with the world champion Houston Astros, pending his physical. Abreu’s deal is reportedly worth an estimated $60 million.

Guardians mailbag: Offseason upgrades, Shane Bieber’s value, José Ramírez helmet highlights


By Zack Meisel

CLEVELAND – The Winter Meetings begin in less than a week. The MLB offseason is already off and (not at all) humming. There’s no (shortage of) time to waste, so let’s get right to your Guardians questions (after I finish this doughnut), which have been edited for clarity and length.

If you got to be (team president) Chris Antonetti this offseason, what two moves would be at the top of your list to make? — Ethan S.

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I’d switch the ever-present water bottle in my hand from Aquafina to Dasani and I’d share all my roster secrets with the thoughtful, Cleveland-based writer from The Athletic. OK, really, if it’s only two moves, I’d bolster the lineup with one significant position player upgrade and I’d try like hell to find another quality starting pitcher. I’m skeptical that the Brewers will move Brandon Woodruff or Corbin Burnes (for now), but I’d certainly place a call a day to their new head of baseball operations, general manager Matt Arnold. That’s probably a long shot, so I’d settle for forking over a few prospects to land one lineup fixture and spending some cash on another short-term option, and I’ll keep this answer vague because surely everyone will fill this mailbag with questions about every potential Cleveland target, starting with …

Josh Bell is incredibly underrated and is the free agent I would most like to see the Guardians sign. Do you think he’s the right fit? — Andy L.

Sign me up. I’m going to assume Bell didn’t simply forget how to hit once he landed in San Diego at the trade deadline. Historically, he has hit for power and done so with a great walk rate and a healthy strikeout rate. He lowered his strikeout rate last season to 15.8 percent, which ranked 29th in the majors. So, he possesses traits this organization covets, and he’s a 30-year-old switch hitter who doesn’t have profound differences in his platoon splits. Before a September swoon with the Padres, he routinely, for years, ranked among league leaders in exit velocity and hard-hit rate. He’d allow Josh Naylor to slide over to designated hitter at times, and maybe to the bench against some lefties. It makes sense to me.


Cleveland Guardian Josh Bell? It has a nice ring to it. (Eric Hartline / USA Today)
I think we should trade Shane Bieber now. An insane year and the Cy Young Award have propelled his value, but there are still concerns (drop in spin rate, velocity, etc). What’s the best package we could get for an ace with two arbitration years left? — Matthew O.

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Not enough to keep the team afloat as a World Series hopeful.

It’s complicated and nuanced (and therefore deserving of its own deep dive in the near future), but I get the sense the Guardians aren’t shopping Bieber like they did with other two-years-of-control-remaining stars of yore. In this case, the Guardians would be dealing him to a fellow contender, but they would need major-league talent in return. They aren’t trying to undo the progress they made in 2022, they already have a loaded farm system, and Bieber still pitched well enough with his diminished velocity last season to finish seventh in the American League Cy Young voting with his 200 innings, 198 strikeouts and 2.88 ERA.

Finding a team that matches up well is challenging. This type of deal is far easier to execute if it’s between a contender and a rebuilder. Go ahead, deal him to the Blue Jays for a package anchored by catcher Alejandro Kirk. Now how are you replacing Bieber in the rotation? Any upper-tier free-agent starter will cost more than Cleveland wants to spend. If anything, the Guardians should be targeting front-line starting pitching in a trade in an effort to upgrade from Zach Plesac or Aaron Civale.

This might be a different conversation if Daniel Espino, Gavin Williams and/or Tanner Bibee were a year or two further along in their development, which is why we should revisit this discussion next winter (or in July, if the Guardians are floundering). For now, Bieber is more valuable to Cleveland than to another team.

At this point, was getting rid of Franmil Reyes the right decision? Where will he end up next year? — John R.

It may have seemed like a premature decision at the time, but as I wrote then, the Guardians couldn’t find anyone willing to give up anything for Reyes at the trade deadline, and they knew they would non-tender him at the end of the season anyway, making him a free agent. At that point, they treasured the extra 40-man roster spot and didn’t believe Reyes would be able to turn around his season at Triple-A Columbus. Reyes didn’t really hit for the Cubs, either, after they claimed him.

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With Cleveland: .213/.254/.350 slash line
With Chicago: .234/.301/.389 slash line

He’ll probably land a one-year deal, maybe something loaded with incentives, with a rebuilding club. The National League employing the designated hitter should increase his suitors. You asked for a guess. I’ll offer three, purely my speculation, and when I’m right, we’ll all forget about the other two: Nationals, Marlins, Red Sox.


Where will Franmil Reyes land after a disappointing season? (Ken Blaze / USA Today)
Is management sure Oscar Gonzalez is the real thing? I heard (manager Terry Francona) say you really need 750 at-bats before you can make a judgment on a hitter. — Robert K.

His profile is so odd and fascinating. I could see Gonzalez hitting 30 home runs next season. I could see him limping to a .270 on-base percentage. I could see him doing both of those things simultaneously. There’s not much that would surprise me with him, which is why it’s helpful for the Guardians to have Will Brennan and George Valera as insurance. If Gonzalez’s power materializes — he did hit 27 doubles in 91 games — then you’re really just hoping he exhibits a bit more patience and improves his chase rate. Otherwise, given how often he expands the zone, why would pitchers ever offer him something he could whack for extra bases?

Is there even a fraction of a chance the Guardians make a legitimate offer for Willson Contreras? I’ve seen one pundit link the two as a good match, but Cleveland’s track record when it comes to free-agent spending (or lack of spending) is pretty well documented. — Thomas M.

I don’t think so. They were one of many teams that did homework on Contreras at the trade deadline, but the Guardians didn’t feel he was a good fit to mesh with a new pitching staff in the middle of the season. They weren’t the only team to get that vibe, as evidenced by him remaining a Cub. MLB Trade Rumors projects Contreras will receive $84 million over four years from his new team. Even if Contreras had appealed to them four months ago, that’s not a price the Guardians would pay for a catcher this winter.

Watching the playoffs made me question the ceiling of our offense with Myles Straw’s lack of power. Do you see this forcing the front office to get rid of Straw, slide Steven Kwan to center (field) and call up Valera? Straw seems like the outfield version of John McDonald: spectacular defense but too limited offensively to start regularly. — Josh C.

The Guardians certainly need an additional spark in the lineup, and they can’t assume it’ll all come from their in-house options. It sounds like they know that. They need something from the bottom of the order, too. My sense is Straw will be the Opening Day center fielder and if he doesn’t hit, there would eventually be opportunities for Brennan, Valera or Will Benson to snag some of his at-bats (depending on how the rest of the roster shakes out). The Guardians greatly value what Straw offers defensively and with his legs, but if he’s a black hole offensively, he can still supply those skills in a more concentrated role.

What happened to Danny Salazar’s comeback attempt with the Yankees last season? — Charles S.

The Yankees released him in late September after he made two appearances for their Triple-A affiliate. In the last five years, he has totaled 26 1/3 innings in professional ball. Great at card tricks, though.

Cleveland is flush with middle-infield talent. Please rank these up-and-coming young talents to give us an indication of who the future might be. — Joel B.

Frankly, I haven’t seen them play enough to be confident in my own assessments, so I try to balance what experts say, what I hear from scouts and player development staff, and the glimpses I’ve gotten on the field. I’m probably most intrigued by Brayan Rocchio’s complete skill set. Elements of his swing and certain mannerisms, such as the way he rests his bat on his shoulder as he awaits a pitch, are eerily reminiscent of Francisco Lindor. It’s an unfair comparison, but Rocchio has a high ceiling. I’d also like to see what Tyler Freeman, with his elite contact ability, could do with 500 plate appearances in the majors, especially when surrounded by other contact-oriented hitters in a lineup.

What makes predicting the future of the middle infield so tricky, though, is all of these young players have different strengths and, as has been written and said four billion times, there isn’t enough major-league playing time to go around to get a clear understanding of each player. Gabriel Arias has drawn rave reviews for his defense and arm, but his bat is a bit of a question mark, and yet he wound up as the club’s first baseman in the American League Division Series. The next wave beyond those three includes Jose Tena, Angel Martinez and Juan Brito, who are all on the Guardians’ 40-man roster. Andrés Giménez cemented himself as a middle-infield mainstay last season. It’ll be difficult for anyone else to follow suit, barring injury, while Amed Rosario is the everyday shortstop.

One final note on this topic, because I think this gets lost in conversations about the middle infield, trades and prospect rankings: What I think or what you think or what certain websites think doesn’t really matter. Teams maintain their own evaluations of their prospects and every other team’s prospects, and those are what drive trade talks and playing time allotments. If the Guardians thought less of the prospects the A’s targeted in the Sean Murphy discussions this summer, Murphy would probably have a townhouse at Crocker Park by now. Nolan Jones, Cleveland’s No. 1 prospect for several years, was traded for Brito, Colorado’s No. 30 prospect earlier this year, according to MLB Pipeline. Clearly, Cleveland was lower on Jones and higher on Brito than those lists suggested.


Brayan Rocchio makes a throw during spring training. (Allan Henry / USA Today)
When do pitchers and catchers report? And is there a winter caravan this year where the team sends players and some management to various cities in Ohio for publicity and hot stove talk? — Fred G.

Who could forget about those winter tours, with players wandering various malls across Ohio to pose for photos with people as they wrapped up their holiday shopping? That hasn’t been a thing in years. And malls seem to be in decline. Coincidence? Hmm. For the first time since 2020, there is expected to be a GuardsFest. Guardians Fest? Guardy Party? As for a spring training report date, it sounds like the middle of February, a little less than two weeks before the first Cactus League game, which is set for Feb. 25 against the Reds.

Do you have a favorite from this year’s José Ramírez 2022 Helmet Counter entries? — Robert G.

There were a handful of noteworthy ones. On April 15, Ramírez’s helmet flew off during his 1,000th career hit. On May 8, it flew off as he fell down while fouling off an Alek Manoah pitch that was darting toward his knee. On June 22, he retrieved his helmet mid-play, which was a first. On June 29, he lost it while swinging at a Jhoan Duran 93 mph splinker.

He saved his best for last, though. In Game 162, he slapped what would, for most hitters, be a single to left field. He lost the helmet after a wide turn at first and then stretched it into a double. He slid into the bag feet-first and wound up doing the splits as he called for time.

I especially enjoy when he loses it twice or three times in the span of a few minutes. He’ll reach first on an infield hit. One. He’ll steal second. Two. He’ll race home on a single and narrowly beat the throw. Three.

In all, Ramírez tallied 95 helmet losses this season (plus two in the playoffs), eclipsing his previous career high of 79, set a year earlier.

The Cleveland Guardians were reportedly in on free Jose Abreu, before the first baseman agreed to terms on a three-year contract with the Houston Astros Monday, Cleveland.com's Paul Hoynes reports.

Abreu's deal with the Astros is reportedly worth around $60 million over three years. The Guardians reportedly also offered Abreu a three-year contract, but the slugger chose Houston instead of Cleveland.

The Guardians may have missed out on adding a three-time American League All-Star and the 2020 AL MVP, but the fact that the club was pursuing a topflight free agent should be encouraging to the club's fan base. It will be interesting to see what moves the Guardians make this winter.

At the very least for Cleveland, the Guardians can be thankful that Abreu is leaving the American League Central division, thus weakening the Chicago White Sox, expected by many to be the Guardians' top competition in the division in 2023.

The Guardians' offseason is far from over. The addition of one more big bat to Cleveland's lineup would certainly help their club as they hope to compete for an American League Pennant.

Gonzalez' future certainly is unpredictable since his one flaw:

then you’re really just hoping he exhibits a bit more patience and improves his chase rate;

is something that he has carried with him at every level in the minors and you'd think would be easy for big league pitchers to exploit. But he contributed plenty in 2022 despite that

- Kirk McCarty and Mike Clevinger, two former Cleveland pitchers, have reportedly found new homes.

McCarty, one of 17 rookies to make their big-league debut with the Guardians in 2022, is close to signing with SSL Landers of the Korean Baseball Organization according to a report from Ilgan Sports. The Guardians designated McCarty for assignment on Nov. 15 when they set their 40-man roster for the Rule 5 Draft in December.

The left-handed McCarty spent six years in the Cleveland organziation after being drafted out of the University of Southern Mississippi in the seventh round in 2017. He made 13 appearances, including two starts, for the Guardians last season and went 4-3 with a 4.54 ERA.

McCarty had trouble keeping the ball in the yard, allowing 11 homers in 37 2/3 innings. He proved valuable as a long reliever, registering all four of his wins while pitching three or more innings in relief. McCarty’s best stretch came when he pitched four scoreless innings against Boston in an 8-3 win on July 26 at Fenway Park. Five days later he allowed one run in 3 1/3 innings in a 5-3 win over the Rays at Tropicana Field.

He spent most of the season at Class AAA Columbus, going 4-1 with a 3.38 ERA in 17 games, including eight starts.

The Guardians designated McCarty for assignment on July 6. The Orioles claimed him on waivers, but DFA’d him on July 14. The Guardians reclaimed him on waivers.

McCarty pitched well enough to make Cleveland’s 26-man roster for the wild card series against the Rays. He did not make the ALDS roster against the Yankees.

Clevinger is no stranger to Cleveland fans and they will be seeing a lot more of him in 2023 after he agreed to a one-year deal with the White Sox, according to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. The deal is worth an estimated $8 million.

The long-haired Clevinger, featuring a violent leg kick in his delivery, pitched for Cleveland from 2016 until he was traded to San Diego in July of 2020. The return for Cleveland helped the Guardians populate their big-league club with 15-game winner Cal Quantrill, first baseman-DH Josh Naylor, utility men Gabriel Arias and Owen Miller and left-hander Joey Cantillo, who was added to the 40-man roster on Nov. 15. Free agent Austin Hedges, the Guardians starting catcher the last two seasons, was also acquired in that deal.

After the trade Clevinger made just five starts, including one in the postseason, for the Padres before he required his second ligament replacement surgery on his right elbow. He did not pitch in 2021, but returned in 2022 to go 7-7 with a 4.33 ERA in 23 games, including 22 starts.

He made two postseason starts for the Padres this year, but allowed seven runs on nine hits in 2 2/3 innings.

Clevinger will join Dylan Cease, Lance Lynn, Lucas Giolito and Michael Kopech in Chicago’s rotation. Kopeck missed the end of the 2022 season with a sore right shoulder and underwent surgery on his right knee in October.

In his time with Cleveland, Clevinger went 42-22 with a 3.20 ERA in 101 games. When he returned to the Padres’ rotation this year, his velocity dipped from 95.4 mph in 2020 to 93.6 mph in 2022, according to Baseball Savant.

In 2020 the White Sox pushed hard to acquire Clevinger from the Guardians, but they decided not to trade him to a division rival. This time around the White Sox landed their guy.

$8M on today's report for Clevinger, down from yesterday's rumored $12M.