JotCast | Guardians Outlook '23

Guardians Outlook '23

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Mark P

1:52

Another player who's more of a league-average bat than a true offensive force. Its a fun sentiment to have Santana back in Cleveland, but it's not the upgrade they need

Walter

1:53

12.2M for Bieber for last year in arb. Not to expensive to keep and affordable for our teams to trade for. What will actually happen?

Mark P

1:53

Not "that" expensive, but everything in the Guardians' recent history suggests Bieber will be moved this winter

Go Guards

1:54

Any truth to the Kevin Cash coming to Cleveland rumors?

Mark P

1:55

The Rays have contractual control over Cash through the 2025 season, so doubt it happens. There hasn't been any suggestion that Cash is unhappy in Tampa, and given the Rays' track record, you'd think they would certainly want Cash to remain in the fold

Jimmy ryan

1:57

We talk about how the guards will probably trade Bieber, but do you think they would trade from the more controlable type of pitcher range this off season like the mariners potentially will? If so, what pitchers are they looking to potentially offer and what return would they be looking at?

Mark P

1:57

Any of the Bibee/Allen/Williams would get a hefty trade return back, so if the Guardians wanted to get uncharacteristically aggressive, offering any of that group would open a lot of doors

1:59

But, and it's a big but....it would be downright shocking to see any of them traded. The Guardians' pattern with young pitching is pretty straight-forward by now, and I don't see them dealing from their next rotation core when Bieber is either dealt or maybe just leaving next winter, and then McKenzie/Quantrill are both coming off injury-marred seasons

Chestbridge

2:00

Is Joc Pederson a reasonable fit for Cleveland, or will he command too much in years/dollars? I would think he would do well with their short RF porch, and they could rotate him at DH/RF.

Mark P

2:01

I haven't gotten an intel on our top-50 free agents list yet, but I feel like Pederson is the kind of player whose contract offers could vary somewhat wildly. If they do stick within a one-year or two-year range at a reasonable rate, Cleveland makes sense

2:03

Sorry for the delay here, some lag on my browser. I've hopefully got things corrected

M.J.

2:04

Is there any disconnect between the front office/ownership and the players? The front office refused to make additions at last year’s deadline, and punted at this year’s deadline, despite being only 0.5 games behind the Twins for first place. It seems like they don’t believe in the players. Last year’s team might’ve won it all, had the front office made a few trades at the deadline. It was reported Antonetti and Chernoff made an emergency trip to Houston, after the deadline, because of trading Bell, Rosario, and Civale.

Mark P

2:05

Given how Minnesota poured it on later in the year, the Guardians might not have been able to catch them anyways, so a deadline push still might've been for naught.

We don't know most of what happens behind the clubhouse doors, so I'd rather not speculate on any hard feelings. It's safe to assume the players were upset by the deadline moves, since who wouldn't be?

Cal Guards Fan

2:06

Is there any way to trade Straw? Are we stuck with him?

Mark P

2:07

In another kind of "bad contract swap," perhaps

And Straw's contract isn't BAD bad. It's moderately priced, and at least he is a good fielder. But, there are lots of good or even great fielders out there who can't hit, so it still surprises me that the Guards were so eager to lock Straw up

Hans

2:09

Who is a realistic trade partner for all of the middle infield depth log-jammed in the minors?

Mark P

2:12

Teams like the Blue Jays, Brewers, Mariners, Marlins, maybe the Giants

2:13

But like I mentioned earlier, a lot of the Guardians' middle infielders can be lumped into the same grouping. And they maybe aren't likely to get a big return for any of them, save maybe a decent return for Arias (but not a gamechanging offensive threat)

Guard

2:13

wh are the chances that a Josh Naylor extension happens

Mark P

2:16

It occurs to me that I forgot to address extension possibilities in my writeup. Whoops!

Naylor certainly stands out as a distinct candidate. He's already hit well, and his very good but slightly marred (his brutal start, the missed injury time) season won't blow his pay scale entirely out of whack. Plus, Naylor can stick around to play with this brother, seems like a win-win.

2025-26 is Naylor's free agent class, so this might be the Guardians' last realistic offseason to get a deal done.

Guards Fan

2:17

Cleveland has 5 positions filled (both Naylors, Gimenez, Ramirez, and Kwan). I would assume they use next year to continuing sifting through internal SS options. How many of the remaining 3 spots should they leave open for internal auditions (Manzardo and Valera for example) and how many should they upgrade externally?

Mark P

2:18

The team needs offense now, and presumably wants to win in 2024. As promising as some of the prospects are, it's a risk to give Manzardo or Valera everyday roles and hope they hit the ground running as rookies

Ballpark Digest

2:19

Have you been to Progressive Field?

Mark P

2:19

I have! Not since 2008, but it's a very nice ballpark

Rich

2:20

Hey! What are your thoughts on Williams, Bibee and Allen? Who has the highest ceiling and who might be most likely to encounter a sophomore slump?

Mark P

2:20

Maybe just a matter of personal preference, but I think Williams will be the best of the group.

Ken from Bayonne

2:20

Who is most likely to be Cleveland’s ace in a couple of years.

Mark P

2:21

Some pitcher we've never heard of, currently figuring things out at A-ball or something

JWS

2:22

Who are legitimate candidates for HC next season?

Mark P

2:22

I assume you mean manager, since 'head coach' is for other sports!

2:23

If I had to guess, my instinct is that the Guardians pick a younger manager, maybe a first-timer

MarkE

2:24

Do the Guards have any shot at acquiring Juan Soto?

Mark P

2:25

A shot in the sense of 1%, sure

It would be amazing and fun to see them actually do it, but dealing a bunch of young talent for one player (no matter how great) for one year doesn't seem to fit the Andonetti/Chernoff model

Tim H

2:25

How do you think CLEs MIF situation shakes out? Also do you foresee any possibility of a Cal Quantrill non tender?

Mark P

2:27

$6.6MM for Quantrill is MLBTR's projection, which isn't overly expensive. Plus, he is under arb control through 2025.

2:28

Despite the rough year, Quantrill came back from the IL to pitch well in September. That might be enough evidence to show that he's healthy, and he'd be some level of trade asset.

In short, the Guards aren't dumping him for nothing

Jeff

2:28

Does Tito go into the HOF as an Indian/Guardian or Red Sox?

Mark P

2:29

Red Sox hat. Can't beat two rings.

Guard

2:29

Who on this team gets non tendered

Mark P

2:29

Laureano is a safe bet, probably Gallagher, and maybe they'd part ways with Karinchak. He seems to have fallen by the wayside