Cleveland Sports Forum

The way the bats have performed the FO should be praised for trading Civale for a hitter. The game is supposed to be entertainment and not boring.

Guardians put utility infielder on injured list, activate veteran outfielder
Updated: Aug. 08, 2023, 3:42 p.m.|Published: Aug. 08, 2023, 3:02 p.m.

David Fry was placed on the injured list Tuesday with a sore left hamstring.AP




By Joe Noga, cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Guardians have placed utility infielder and backup catcher David Fry on the 10-day injured list with a sore hamstring and activated veteran outfielder Ramon Laureano, who was acquired Monday in a waiver claim from Oakland.

Fry’s move to the injured list is retroactive to Aug. 5. Laureano was in Cleveland’s starting lineup Tuesday for the second game of its series against Toronto.



Fry injured his left hamstring in Friday’s win against Chicago while taking a throw from second baseman Andrés Giménez on a double play in the second inning. Francona said he would serve as the emergency catcher on Monday and that the team did not want to call up a replacement for one game.


“He probably can’t run real good, but he could catch,” Francona said.



Fry tried to convince Francona that he could play Monday, but after a conversation with trainers, and considering the results of an MRI on his hamstring, Francona had the final say.

“After we got the results back, I said, ‘You’re kind of a throwback and I mean that in a good way,’” Francona said. “I said, ‘You’re carving yourself out a little niche here on our team, so let’s take care of this,’ Because he is a tough kid and I don’t want him to hurt himself.”

Laureano was the entire offense for one night.

In addition he made 2 really good fielding plays - as a former Gold Glover. The diving catch and the monster throw on another play to 3B to keep the runner from tagging up from 2nd.

Reviewing every Cleveland Guardians trade of the last 5 years Oct 1, 2022; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians shortstop Amed Rosario, left, and relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase, right watch a highlight video with teammates of the team’s 2022 season before the game between the Guardians and the Kansas City Royals at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
By Zack Meisel
5h ago


CLEVELAND — Grading a trade can be a fruitless endeavor. One minute, it appears one side received the better end of the deal. Then, a prospect blossoms or a player suffers an injury and opinions on the trade evolve.

Context matters. Timing, team needs and a club’s urgency to win all factor into the equation.

So, with the trade deadline in the rearview, let’s review every trade the Guardians have made (involving a member of the 40-man roster) over the last five years.

July 19, 2018: Traded Francisco Mejía to the Padres for Brad Hand and Adam Cimber

Category: A contender addressing a need

Cleveland’s bullpen was a disaster for the first few months of the 2018 season. Remember Alexi Ogando and Jeff Beliveau and Neil Ramírez and George Kontos and Oliver Drake and … The organization was a bit skeptical about Mejía’s ability to stick at catcher, and Hand was an All-Star closer who supplied the club with two and a half years of strong relief. Cimber actually enjoyed his two best seasons in the years immediately following his exit from Cleveland. Mejía did wind up sticking at catcher, but his bat hasn’t translated in the big leagues (.678 OPS). This swap made sense both at the time and in hindsight.

July 31, 2018: Traded Jhon Torres and Conner Capel to the Cardinals for Oscar Mercado

Category: Stockpiling depth

Mercado delivered a standout rookie season in 2019, success he has never been able to duplicate in the majors (.596 OPS since 2019). Capel has briefly appeared in the majors the last two seasons. Torres never climbed past A-ball. This once looked like a steal for Cleveland.

July 31, 2018: Traded Willi Castro to the Tigers for Leonys Martin and Kyle Dowdy

Category: A contender addressing a need

The team cycled through Greg Allen, Melky Cabrera, Brandon Guyer, Rajai Davis, Tyler Naquin, Bradley Zimmer and Brandon Barnes in the outfield that season. Martin didn’t halt the revolving door, because shortly after he arrived in Cleveland, a life-threatening bacterial infection ended his season. Castro owns a .681 OPS in five seasons with the Tigers and Twins.

Aug. 31, 2018: Traded Julian Merryweather to the Blue Jays for Josh Donaldson

Category: A contender addressing a need

The teams completed this deal in the closing seconds before the midnight deadline for waiver trades. Donaldson was nursing a calf injury, but it was a worthwhile gamble. He totaled 60 plate appearances over the next month, and then went 1-for-11 in the ALDS sweep at the hands of the Astros. Merryweather, 31, owns a 4.65 ERA in 95 career appearances with the Blue Jays and Cubs.

Nov. 14, 2018: Traded Erik Gonzalez, Tahnaj Thomas and Dante Mendoza to the Pirates for Jordan Luplow and Max Moroff

Category: Stockpiling depth

Moroff went 4-for-32 with 16 strikeouts for Cleveland (and yet someone sported his jersey at Monday’s Guardians-Blue Jays game). Luplow was the key piece to the deal, as he posted an .834 OPS in 150 games for the club, including a 1.181 OPS against lefties, in 2019. Thomas and Mendoza, both 24, are pitching at Double A and High A, respectively, in the Pirates’ system. Gonzalez has bounced around the majors and has spent this season with the White Sox Triple-A affiliate.
Yan Gomes (Ken Blaze / USA Today)

Nov. 30, 2018: Traded Yan Gomes to the Nationals for Daniel Johnson, Jefry Rodriguez and Andruw Monasterio

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects

Gomes’ departure did pave the way for Roberto Perez’s career year (24 homers), but Cleveland didn’t really net much of anything from the three prospects it acquired, even though Johnson and Rodriguez appeared, at different times, like they had bright futures in the organization. Johnson appeared in 35 games for Cleveland and has spent this season with the Padres’ Double-A affiliate. Rodriguez made 10 appearances for the club in 2019. Monasterio broke into the majors this season with the Brewers.

Dec. 13, 2018: Traded Yandy Díaz and Cole Sulser to the Rays and Edwin Encarnación and a competitive balance pick to the Mariners for Jake Bauers, Carlos Santana and cash

Category: A big one

Cleveland saved a bit of money by moving on from Encarnación and they enjoyed Santana’s homecoming, his lone All-Star season. But they really missed on Díaz, who has developed into one of the steadiest hitters in the AL. They had high hopes for Bauers, based on his age, his walk rate and his power. They didn’t feel pain from this deal in the short-term, but they certainly have as time passed.

Dec. 15, 2018: Traded Yonder Alonso to the White Sox for Alex Call

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects

With Santana and Bauers aboard, the club didn’t care to devote at-bats to Alonso, who posted a 98 OPS+ in his lone season in Cleveland and was still due $9 million. Call was one of 17 rookies to debut for the Guardians last season, though his stay was short. He has since joined the Nationals’ outfield mix.

Jan. 6, 2019: Traded Sam Haggerty and Walker Lockett to the Mets for Kevin Plawecki

Category: Stockpiling depth

Plawecki served as Cleveland’s backup catcher in 2019, but there’s not much to note here. Haggerty and Lockett have played sparingly in the majors.

Feb. 4, 2019: Traded Jordan Milbrath to the Marlins for Nick Wittgren

Category: Stockpiling depth

The Guardians have excelled in recent years at pinpointing overlooked relievers in other organizations or free agency. Wittgren is a prime example. He posted a 3.88 ERA in three seasons with Cleveland, and was especially reliable in 2019. Milbrath spent one season in Miami’s system and last pitched in 2021, when he logged nine innings for the Twins’ Double-A affiliate.

July 28, 2019: Traded Ruben Cardenas and international bonus slot money to the Rays for Christian Arroyo and Hunter Wood

Category: Stockpiling depth

Tampa had a crowded 40-man roster, so the Rays offloaded Arroyo and Wood to Cleveland, where neither player contributed much. Wood made 17 appearances for the club in 2019. Arroyo played third base during the ninth inning of one game for Cleveland in 2020. That’s it. Cardenas, 25, has reached Triple A with the Rays.
Franmil Reyes (Nuccio DiNuzzo / Getty Images)

July 31, 2019: Traded Trevor Bauer to the Reds for Yasiel Puig, Scott Moss and, from the Padres, Logan Allen, Franmil Reyes and Victor Nova

Category: A big one

The front office had entertained offers for Bauer for months — even nearing completion on a deal about a month before this one was executed — and he didn’t help his cause when he launched a baseball into the Kansas City sky a few days ahead of the trade deadline. The Reds had Bauer for a season and a half; the half-season was ugly, and the full season (2020) was more like one-third of a season, but Bauer did win the NL Cy Young. Reyes went from middle-of-the-order bat to afterthought without warning; he’s now a member of the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate. Three years after this trade was consummated, none of the players remain in their respective organizations.

Dec. 2, 2019: Traded Adenys Bautista to the Red Sox for Sandy León

Category: Stockpiling depth

Another deal to scoop up a backup catcher. León’s name pops up throughout Cleveland’s transaction page over the last few years.

Dec. 15, 2019: Traded Corey Kluber to the Rangers for Emmanuel Clase and Delino DeShields

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects/a big one

Cleveland had no intention of paying Kluber his $17.5 million salary for 2020, so they dealt him to the Rangers, for whom he pitched a total of one inning. DeShields had a forgettable 2020 season, but Clase, despite missing that year because of a PED suspension, has blossomed into the club’s closer. The deal was scrutinized at the time, but Clase has made it more than worthwhile for Cleveland.

Aug. 31, 2020: Traded Mike Clevinger, Greg Allen and Matt Waldron to the Padres for Josh Naylor, Cal Quantrill, Austin Hedges, Gabriel Arias, Owen Miller and Joey Cantillo

Category: A big one

This trade was completed at about 4:30 a.m. after hours of negotiating the nine names involved. Cleveland didn’t land the top-tier prospects in San Diego’s loaded system, instead prioritizing quantity over quality, but the trade still looks like a winner. Hedges didn’t hit, but he was a leader in the clubhouse. Prior to his rocky 2023, Quantrill provided plenty of value on the mound. Naylor has emerged as one of the better hitters in the American League. Cantillo could make his big-league debut before the end of the season. The Padres controlled Clevinger for two and a half seasons, but he totaled only 133 innings with them because of injuries.
Francisco Lindor (Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

Jan. 7, 2021: Traded Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco to the Mets for Amed Rosario, Andrés Giménez, Josh Wolf and Isaiah Greene

Category: A big one

For several years, questions and rumors circulated about Lindor’s future in Cleveland. Would the club pony up and sign him to a long-term extension? Would he even want to remain with the franchise? If they trade him, will they strike at the right time for the right crop of prospects? In the end, they dealt him with one year of team control remaining and in return, they received short-term help with Rosario, long-term help with Giménez and a couple of lottery tickets that have yet to click. Makes you wonder what they could have obtained for Lindor had they traded him a year earlier.

June 10, 2021: Traded Jake Bauers to the Mariners for Damon Casetta-Stubbs

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Bauers just never clicked in Cleveland, with a .218/.305/.352 slash line in 160 games. In mid-June 2021, they moved on from him in favor of Bobby Bradley. Bauers, now 27, has logged a .223/.302/.486 slash line in 61 games with the Yankees this season. Casetta-Stubbs is pitching for the Ottawa Titans in the independent Frontier League. Bauers is the last Cleveland player to hit for the cycle.

July 29, 2021: Traded César Hernández to the White Sox for Konnor Pilkington

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects

Cleveland dumped Hernández at the deadline two years ago after he enjoyed a solid run (.747 OPS, Gold Glove award) over 154 games with the club. Pilkington saved the Guardians’ rotation on occasion last season, but became a roster casualty earlier this year.

July 30, 2021: Traded Jordan Luplow and DJ Johnson to the Rays for Peyton Battenfield

Category: Stockpiling depth

Luplow has played for five different organizations — Rays, Diamondbacks, Braves, Blue Jays and Twins — since the trade. Battenfield worked his way into the Guardians’ rotation mix this season, and is pitching at Triple-A Columbus.

July 30, 2021: Traded Phil Maton and Yainer Diaz to the Astros for Myles Straw

Category: Stockpiling depth

Cleveland needed outfield help, as had long been the case. They still need outfield help. Straw has proven to be an exemplary fielder (though his metrics have tapered off this season), but his bat hasn’t contributed much and his stolen base rate has plummeted in the last few months. The Guardians granted him an extension that runs through at least 2026. Diaz has developed into a power bat for Houston and Maton, whom the Guardians originally acquired for international bonus slot money, has been a solid middle reliever.

July 30, 2021: Traded Eddie Rosario and cash to the Braves for Pablo Sandoval

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Sandoval never even visited Cleveland before the club released him. Rosario was a bust in Cleveland — a .685 OPS in 78 games — and then wound up as the NLCS MVP for the Braves en route to their World Series title.

Nov. 19, 2021: Traded Junior Caminero to the Rays for Tobias Myers

Category: Stockpiling depth

This one might eventually sting for Cleveland’s front office more than any other. Caminero has soared up every prospect ranking, and he didn’t turn 20 until a few weeks ago. The Athletic’s Keith Law placed him at No. 5 overall in his updated Top 60 last month. Myers, meanwhile, never pitched for the Guardians, though they added him to their crowded 40-man roster at the time of the trade. He made 14 forgettable starts at Triple-A Columbus and then bounced to the Giants and White Sox before landing this year at the Brewers’ Double-A affiliate.

Nov. 22, 2021: Traded J.C. Mejía to the Brewers for David Fry

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Mejía was a mess as part of Cleveland’s disastrous, injury-marred rotation in 2021. He has split this season between the Brewers’ bullpen and their Triple-A affiliate. Fry, meanwhile, has carved out a role on the Guardians as a backup catcher/corner infielder/corner outfielder. In a small sample, he has fared especially well against lefties.

April 8, 2022: Traded Bradley Zimmer to the Blue Jays for Anthony Castro

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Zimmer was a first-round pick and, at one time, the organization’s top prospect, but he never put it together at the plate in the majors. In 858 plate appearances spread out over parts of five seasons, he posted a .225/.310/.347 slash line. He showed flashes of power, stole bases at an efficient rate and covered miles of grass in center field, but he both struggled to stay healthy and hold down the position. He has bounced to the Triple-A affiliates of the Dodgers and Red Sox this year. Castro made 12 appearances for the Guardians last season.

Aug. 2, 2022: Traded Sandy León to the Twins for Ian Hamilton

Category: Meeting Sandy León’s annual transaction quota

The Guardians had an agreement with León that if there were an opportunity for the veteran catcher to land a big-league role, they would accommodate him. What’s noteworthy, aside from the fact that Hamilton has been stellar for the Yankees this season, is that this was Cleveland’s lone deadline deal last season, before the club cruised to a division title.

Nov. 15, 2022: Traded Carlos Vargas to the Diamondbacks for Ross Carver

Category: Clearing out space on the 40-man roster

The Guardians carried Vargas on their 40-man roster for a couple years before cutting ties with him, even though he never entered a game for them. Opponents have registered an .899 OPS against him at Triple A this season. Carver has struggled at Double-A Akron, where opponents have compiled an .840 OPS against him.

Nov. 15, 2022: Traded Nolan Jones to the Rockies for Juan Brito

Category: Challenge trade

Brito has thrived as a 21-year-old in Double A, so it’s possible the Guardians wind up with the more productive player. But it was a bit of a head-scratcher that a team starved for outfield help and power dealt away its former top prospect for yet another middle infielder. Jones owns a 115 OPS+ for the Rockies this season.

Dec. 14, 2022: Traded Owen Miller to the Brewers for cash

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Miller always mastered minor-league pitching, but the big-league results have been about the same, whether with the Guardians or Brewers. After a scorching start with Milwaukee this season, he cooled off considerably to a .264/.303/.375 slash line, and was demoted to Triple A last week. In two seasons with Cleveland, he posted a .622 OPS.

Feb. 8, 2023: Traded Will Benson to the Reds for Justin Boyd and Steve Hajjar

Category: Clearing out space on the 40-man roster

The Guardians moved Benson before spring training and instead backed Will Brennan and Oscar Gonzalez as their choices to play alongside Straw and Steven Kwan in the outfield. Well, Benson has excelled for the Reds (131 OPS+) and Cleveland’s outfield has produced the second-worst OPS in the league. Hajjar and Boyd are both at High-A Lake County, though Boyd is out for the year with an injury.
Noah Syndergaard (Ken Blaze / USA Today)

July 26, 2023: Traded Amed Rosario to the Dodgers for Noah Syndergaard

Category: Swapping one veteran at a position of surplus for another veteran at a position of need

Odds are, this trade won’t result in any huge win or critical loss. Rosario was bound for free agency at the end of the season, the Guardians need to learn about Gabriel Arias, Tyler Freeman and Brayan Rocchio, and with their rotation sorely in need of people to chew up innings, Syndergaard at least has an arm and a pulse.

July 31, 2023: Traded Aaron Civale to the Rays for Kyle Manzardo

Category: Challenge trade

The Guardians sold high on Civale, who carried Cleveland’s rotation in July with a 1.45 ERA in six starts. Manzardo’s numbers have dipped in 2023, but he’s widely considered one of the better, safer hitting prospects in the league. That won’t help the Guardians much in 2023, but considering their struggle to develop impactful hitters, they’re banking on Manzardo to fill a need for years to come.

Aug. 1, 2023: Traded Josh Bell to the Marlins for Jean Segura and Kahlil Watson

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Bell never found a groove in Cleveland, and the club didn’t want him occupying the designated hitter spot the last two months of this season and also had no interest in paying him $16.5 million next year. They’ll still have to cover the remainder of Jean Segura’s deal, but they saved $9 million and landed Watson, a former first-round pick.

TFIR wrote: Wed Aug 09, 2023 10:27 am In addition he made 2 really good fielding plays - as a former Gold Glover. The diving catch and the monster throw on another play to 3B to keep the runner from tagging up from 2nd.

Yep you are looking at your RH utility OF or your starting CF next year. Arm might be too good for CF. Plus they have control through 2025.

Can they keep him off the PEDs?

Worked for Manny and Thome !

Yup !

Should have said "don't get caught"

Reviewing every Cleveland Guardians trade of the last 5 years

Oct 1, 2022; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians shortstop Amed Rosario, left, and relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase, right watch a highlight video with teammates of the team’s 2022 season before the game between the Guardians and the Kansas City Royals at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
By Zack Meisel
Aug 9, 2023
82

Save Article
CLEVELAND — Grading a trade can be a fruitless endeavor. One minute, it appears one side received the better end of the deal. Then, a prospect blossoms or a player suffers an injury and opinions on the trade evolve.

Context matters. Timing, team needs and a club’s urgency to win all factor into the equation.

ADVERTISEMENT


So, with the trade deadline in the rearview, let’s review every trade the Guardians have made (involving a member of the 40-man roster) over the last five years.

July 19, 2018: Traded Francisco Mejía to the Padres for Brad Hand and Adam Cimber

Category: A contender addressing a need

Cleveland’s bullpen was a disaster for the first few months of the 2018 season. Remember Alexi Ogando and Jeff Beliveau and Neil Ramírez and George Kontos and Oliver Drake and … The organization was a bit skeptical about Mejía’s ability to stick at catcher, and Hand was an All-Star closer who supplied the club with two and a half years of strong relief. Cimber actually enjoyed his two best seasons in the years immediately following his exit from Cleveland. Mejía did wind up sticking at catcher, but his bat hasn’t translated in the big leagues (.678 OPS). This swap made sense both at the time and in hindsight.

July 31, 2018: Traded Jhon Torres and Conner Capel to the Cardinals for Oscar Mercado

Category: Stockpiling depth

Mercado delivered a standout rookie season in 2019, success he has never been able to duplicate in the majors (.596 OPS since 2019). Capel has briefly appeared in the majors the last two seasons. Torres never climbed past A-ball. This once looked like a steal for Cleveland.

July 31, 2018: Traded Willi Castro to the Tigers for Leonys Martin and Kyle Dowdy

Category: A contender addressing a need

The team cycled through Greg Allen, Melky Cabrera, Brandon Guyer, Rajai Davis, Tyler Naquin, Bradley Zimmer and Brandon Barnes in the outfield that season. Martin didn’t halt the revolving door, because shortly after he arrived in Cleveland, a life-threatening bacterial infection ended his season. Castro owns a .681 OPS in five seasons with the Tigers and Twins.

Aug. 31, 2018: Traded Julian Merryweather to the Blue Jays for Josh Donaldson

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Category: A contender addressing a need

The teams completed this deal in the closing seconds before the midnight deadline for waiver trades. Donaldson was nursing a calf injury, but it was a worthwhile gamble. He totaled 60 plate appearances over the next month, and then went 1-for-11 in the ALDS sweep at the hands of the Astros. Merryweather, 31, owns a 4.65 ERA in 95 career appearances with the Blue Jays and Cubs.

Nov. 14, 2018: Traded Erik Gonzalez, Tahnaj Thomas and Dante Mendoza to the Pirates for Jordan Luplow and Max Moroff

Category: Stockpiling depth

Moroff went 4-for-32 with 16 strikeouts for Cleveland (and yet someone sported his jersey at Monday’s Guardians-Blue Jays game). Luplow was the key piece to the deal, as he posted an .834 OPS in 150 games for the club, including a 1.181 OPS against lefties, in 2019. Thomas and Mendoza, both 24, are pitching at Double A and High A, respectively, in the Pirates’ system. Gonzalez has bounced around the majors and has spent this season with the White Sox Triple-A affiliate.


Yan Gomes (Ken Blaze / USA Today)
Nov. 30, 2018: Traded Yan Gomes to the Nationals for Daniel Johnson, Jefry Rodriguez and Andruw Monasterio

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects

Gomes’ departure did pave the way for Roberto Perez’s career year (24 homers), but Cleveland didn’t really net much of anything from the three prospects it acquired, even though Johnson and Rodriguez appeared, at different times, like they had bright futures in the organization. Johnson appeared in 35 games for Cleveland and has spent this season with the Padres’ Double-A affiliate. Rodriguez made 10 appearances for the club in 2019. Monasterio broke into the majors this season with the Brewers.

Dec. 13, 2018: Traded Yandy Díaz and Cole Sulser to the Rays and Edwin Encarnación and a competitive balance pick to the Mariners for Jake Bauers, Carlos Santana and cash

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Category: A big one

Cleveland saved a bit of money by moving on from Encarnación and they enjoyed Santana’s homecoming, his lone All-Star season. But they really missed on Díaz, who has developed into one of the steadiest hitters in the AL. They had high hopes for Bauers, based on his age, his walk rate and his power. They didn’t feel pain from this deal in the short-term, but they certainly have as time passed.

Dec. 15, 2018: Traded Yonder Alonso to the White Sox for Alex Call

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects

With Santana and Bauers aboard, the club didn’t care to devote at-bats to Alonso, who posted a 98 OPS+ in his lone season in Cleveland and was still due $9 million. Call was one of 17 rookies to debut for the Guardians last season, though his stay was short. He has since joined the Nationals’ outfield mix.

Jan. 6, 2019: Traded Sam Haggerty and Walker Lockett to the Mets for Kevin Plawecki

Category: Stockpiling depth

Plawecki served as Cleveland’s backup catcher in 2019, but there’s not much to note here. Haggerty and Lockett have played sparingly in the majors.

Feb. 4, 2019: Traded Jordan Milbrath to the Marlins for Nick Wittgren

Category: Stockpiling depth

The Guardians have excelled in recent years at pinpointing overlooked relievers in other organizations or free agency. Wittgren is a prime example. He posted a 3.88 ERA in three seasons with Cleveland, and was especially reliable in 2019. Milbrath spent one season in Miami’s system and last pitched in 2021, when he logged nine innings for the Twins’ Double-A affiliate.

July 28, 2019: Traded Ruben Cardenas and international bonus slot money to the Rays for Christian Arroyo and Hunter Wood

Category: Stockpiling depth

Tampa had a crowded 40-man roster, so the Rays offloaded Arroyo and Wood to Cleveland, where neither player contributed much. Wood made 17 appearances for the club in 2019. Arroyo played third base during the ninth inning of one game for Cleveland in 2020. That’s it. Cardenas, 25, has reached Triple A with the Rays.


Franmil Reyes (Nuccio DiNuzzo / Getty Images)
July 31, 2019: Traded Trevor Bauer to the Reds for Yasiel Puig, Scott Moss and, from the Padres, Logan Allen, Franmil Reyes and Victor Nova

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Category: A big one

The front office had entertained offers for Bauer for months — even nearing completion on a deal about a month before this one was executed — and he didn’t help his cause when he launched a baseball into the Kansas City sky a few days ahead of the trade deadline. The Reds had Bauer for a season and a half; the half-season was ugly, and the full season (2020) was more like one-third of a season, but Bauer did win the NL Cy Young. Reyes went from middle-of-the-order bat to afterthought without warning; he’s now a member of the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate. Three years after this trade was consummated, none of the players remain in their respective organizations.

Dec. 2, 2019: Traded Adenys Bautista to the Red Sox for Sandy León

Category: Stockpiling depth

Another deal to scoop up a backup catcher. León’s name pops up throughout Cleveland’s transaction page over the last few years.

Dec. 15, 2019: Traded Corey Kluber to the Rangers for Emmanuel Clase and Delino DeShields

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects/a big one

Cleveland had no intention of paying Kluber his $17.5 million salary for 2020, so they dealt him to the Rangers, for whom he pitched a total of one inning. DeShields had a forgettable 2020 season, but Clase, despite missing that year because of a PED suspension, has blossomed into the club’s closer. The deal was scrutinized at the time, but Clase has made it more than worthwhile for Cleveland.

Aug. 31, 2020: Traded Mike Clevinger, Greg Allen and Matt Waldron to the Padres for Josh Naylor, Cal Quantrill, Austin Hedges, Gabriel Arias, Owen Miller and Joey Cantillo

Category: A big one

This trade was completed at about 4:30 a.m. after hours of negotiating the nine names involved. Cleveland didn’t land the top-tier prospects in San Diego’s loaded system, instead prioritizing quantity over quality, but the trade still looks like a winner. Hedges didn’t hit, but he was a leader in the clubhouse. Prior to his rocky 2023, Quantrill provided plenty of value on the mound. Naylor has emerged as one of the better hitters in the American League. Cantillo could make his big-league debut before the end of the season. The Padres controlled Clevinger for two and a half seasons, but he totaled only 133 innings with them because of injuries.


Francisco Lindor (Ethan Miller / Getty Images)
Jan. 7, 2021: Traded Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco to the Mets for Amed Rosario, Andrés Giménez, Josh Wolf and Isaiah Greene

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Category: A big one

For several years, questions and rumors circulated about Lindor’s future in Cleveland. Would the club pony up and sign him to a long-term extension? Would he even want to remain with the franchise? If they trade him, will they strike at the right time for the right crop of prospects? In the end, they dealt him with one year of team control remaining and in return, they received short-term help with Rosario, long-term help with Giménez and a couple of lottery tickets that have yet to click. Makes you wonder what they could have obtained for Lindor had they traded him a year earlier.

June 10, 2021: Traded Jake Bauers to the Mariners for Damon Casetta-Stubbs

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Bauers just never clicked in Cleveland, with a .218/.305/.352 slash line in 160 games. In mid-June 2021, they moved on from him in favor of Bobby Bradley. Bauers, now 27, has logged a .223/.302/.486 slash line in 61 games with the Yankees this season. Casetta-Stubbs is pitching for the Ottawa Titans in the independent Frontier League. Bauers is the last Cleveland player to hit for the cycle.

July 29, 2021: Traded César Hernández to the White Sox for Konnor Pilkington

Category: Swapping a veteran and his salary for prospects

Cleveland dumped Hernández at the deadline two years ago after he enjoyed a solid run (.747 OPS, Gold Glove award) over 154 games with the club. Pilkington saved the Guardians’ rotation on occasion last season, but became a roster casualty earlier this year.

July 30, 2021: Traded Jordan Luplow and DJ Johnson to the Rays for Peyton Battenfield

Category: Stockpiling depth

Luplow has played for five different organizations — Rays, Diamondbacks, Braves, Blue Jays and Twins — since the trade. Battenfield worked his way into the Guardians’ rotation mix this season, and is pitching at Triple-A Columbus.

July 30, 2021: Traded Phil Maton and Yainer Diaz to the Astros for Myles Straw

Category: Stockpiling depth

Cleveland needed outfield help, as had long been the case. They still need outfield help. Straw has proven to be an exemplary fielder (though his metrics have tapered off this season), but his bat hasn’t contributed much and his stolen base rate has plummeted in the last few months. The Guardians granted him an extension that runs through at least 2026. Diaz has developed into a power bat for Houston and Maton, whom the Guardians originally acquired for international bonus slot money, has been a solid middle reliever.

July 30, 2021: Traded Eddie Rosario and cash to the Braves for Pablo Sandoval

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Sandoval never even visited Cleveland before the club released him. Rosario was a bust in Cleveland — a .685 OPS in 78 games — and then wound up as the NLCS MVP for the Braves en route to their World Series title.

Nov. 19, 2021: Traded Junior Caminero to the Rays for Tobias Myers

Category: Stockpiling depth

This one might eventually sting for Cleveland’s front office more than any other. Caminero has soared up every prospect ranking, and he didn’t turn 20 until a few weeks ago. The Athletic’s Keith Law placed him at No. 5 overall in his updated Top 60 last month. Myers, meanwhile, never pitched for the Guardians, though they added him to their crowded 40-man roster at the time of the trade. He made 14 forgettable starts at Triple-A Columbus and then bounced to the Giants and White Sox before landing this year at the Brewers’ Double-A affiliate.

Nov. 22, 2021: Traded J.C. Mejía to the Brewers for David Fry

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Mejía was a mess as part of Cleveland’s disastrous, injury-marred rotation in 2021. He has split this season between the Brewers’ bullpen and their Triple-A affiliate. Fry, meanwhile, has carved out a role on the Guardians as a backup catcher/corner infielder/corner outfielder. In a small sample, he has fared especially well against lefties.

April 8, 2022: Traded Bradley Zimmer to the Blue Jays for Anthony Castro

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Zimmer was a first-round pick and, at one time, the organization’s top prospect, but he never put it together at the plate in the majors. In 858 plate appearances spread out over parts of five seasons, he posted a .225/.310/.347 slash line. He showed flashes of power, stole bases at an efficient rate and covered miles of grass in center field, but he both struggled to stay healthy and hold down the position. He has bounced to the Triple-A affiliates of the Dodgers and Red Sox this year. Castro made 12 appearances for the Guardians last season.

Aug. 2, 2022: Traded Sandy León to the Twins for Ian Hamilton

Category: Meeting Sandy León’s annual transaction quota

The Guardians had an agreement with León that if there were an opportunity for the veteran catcher to land a big-league role, they would accommodate him. What’s noteworthy, aside from the fact that Hamilton has been stellar for the Yankees this season, is that this was Cleveland’s lone deadline deal last season, before the club cruised to a division title.

Nov. 15, 2022: Traded Carlos Vargas to the Diamondbacks for Ross Carver

Category: Clearing out space on the 40-man roster

The Guardians carried Vargas on their 40-man roster for a couple years before cutting ties with him, even though he never entered a game for them. Opponents have registered an .899 OPS against him at Triple A this season. Carver has struggled at Double-A Akron, where opponents have compiled an .840 OPS against him.

Nov. 15, 2022: Traded Nolan Jones to the Rockies for Juan Brito

Category: Challenge trade

Brito has thrived as a 21-year-old in Double A, so it’s possible the Guardians wind up with the more productive player. But it was a bit of a head-scratcher that a team starved for outfield help and power dealt away its former top prospect for yet another middle infielder. Jones owns a 115 OPS+ for the Rockies this season.

Dec. 14, 2022: Traded Owen Miller to the Brewers for cash

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Miller always mastered minor-league pitching, but the big-league results have been about the same, whether with the Guardians or Brewers. After a scorching start with Milwaukee this season, he cooled off considerably to a .264/.303/.375 slash line, and was demoted to Triple A last week. In two seasons with Cleveland, he posted a .622 OPS.

Feb. 8, 2023: Traded Will Benson to the Reds for Justin Boyd and Steve Hajjar

Category: Clearing out space on the 40-man roster

The Guardians moved Benson before spring training and instead backed Will Brennan and Oscar Gonzalez as their choices to play alongside Straw and Steven Kwan in the outfield. Well, Benson has excelled for the Reds (131 OPS+) and Cleveland’s outfield has produced the second-worst OPS in the league. Hajjar and Boyd are both at High-A Lake County, though Boyd is out for the year with an injury.


Noah Syndergaard (Ken Blaze / USA Today)
July 26, 2023: Traded Amed Rosario to the Dodgers for Noah Syndergaard

Category: Swapping one veteran at a position of surplus for another veteran at a position of need

Odds are, this trade won’t result in any huge win or critical loss. Rosario was bound for free agency at the end of the season, the Guardians need to learn about Gabriel Arias, Tyler Freeman and Brayan Rocchio, and with their rotation sorely in need of people to chew up innings, Syndergaard at least has an arm and a pulse.

July 31, 2023: Traded Aaron Civale to the Rays for Kyle Manzardo

Category: Challenge trade

The Guardians sold high on Civale, who carried Cleveland’s rotation in July with a 1.45 ERA in six starts. Manzardo’s numbers have dipped in 2023, but he’s widely considered one of the better, safer hitting prospects in the league. That won’t help the Guardians much in 2023, but considering their struggle to develop impactful hitters, they’re banking on Manzardo to fill a need for years to come.

Aug. 1, 2023: Traded Josh Bell to the Marlins for Jean Segura and Kahlil Watson

Category: Moving on from a failed experiment

Bell never found a groove in Cleveland, and the club didn’t want him occupying the designated hitter spot the last two months of this season and also had no interest in paying him $16.5 million next year. They’ll still have to cover the remainder of Jean Segura’s deal, but they saved $9 million and landed Watson, a former first-round pick.

Guardians rising rookie Tanner Bibee on how to set up a perfect third strike CLEVELAND, OHIO - AUGUST 08: Starting pitcher Tanner Bibee #61 of the Cleveland Guardians pitches during the first inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Progressive Field on August 08, 2023 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
By Zack Meisel
4h ago



CLEVELAND — Slider. Slider. Slider. Slider. Changeup.

Tanner Bibee laughs when he hears the sequence read out loud. Four consecutive sliders to start an at-bat isn’t the norm nor, usually, the plan.

But this was no ordinary battle Tuesday night. Bibee was dueling with four-time All-Star George Springer. The Toronto Blue Jays had the bases loaded with one out with the Cleveland Guardians clinging to a 1-0 lead.

Here’s how Bibee and catcher Bo Naylor partnered on setting up the perfect third strike in a pivotal encounter.

Pitch 1: slider, 85.9 mph, foul ball

Pitch 2: slider, 87.2 mph, “ball”

Pitch 3: slider, 87.1 mph, ball

Pitch 4: slider, 87.4 mph, swinging strike

Pitch 5: changeup, 82.7 mph, called strike

There are two reasons the slider became the go-to pitch in that at-bat.

One, Springer has struggled against them this year (.158 average, .242 slugging percentage), so even when Bibee threw a near-perfect one that wasn’t called a strike (the second pitch), he didn’t deviate from the approach.

Two, with the bases loaded, Bibee couldn’t nibble. He noted Springer is “super aggressive with runners in scoring position,” so he didn’t want to offer him an early fastball.

Bibee: “There’s no reason to give in. I might as well throw my best stuff at the guy, especially with runners in scoring position. A lot of major-league hitters, they’re going to try to sit on a pitch. I’m thinking that he hasn’t been good on sliders all year, so I don’t want to do him a favor. Make him prove that he can hit the slider. Keep throwing it. After he’s seen four in a row, he’s like, ‘Is he going to throw a fifth? Is he going to throw a fastball?’”

Springer never saw a fastball.

Bibee: “We didn’t want to throw him a cookie up there, especially with one out. If there were two outs, it would be a little different.”

The plan wasn’t to sling only sliders toward him until the at-bat reached its conclusion. But every result made a slider an appealing next choice.

Naylor: “Baseball is a cat-and-mouse game. Part of the strategy we had was to be really unpredictable. The sequence played itself out to where, each pitch, that was an unpredictable pitch. As a hitter, you have a little bit of anticipation for certain things, but any kind of advantage we can have to take you off of it, that’s what our job is to do. It worked well in that situation.”

Bibee: “It’s mostly Bo. Bo does a lot of homework. You see Bo, he always has his headphones in, looking at video, looking at his journal. Whether it’s him, (pitching coach) Carl (Willis), (assistant pitching coach) Joe Torres — everyone does a good job of being able to identify what people are good at, what they’re bad at, and at that point, it’s just executing a scouting report.”

The key for Bibee is being able to flaunt that he can throw his slider for strikes. Springer chased the first pitch out of the zone. The second pitch should have been a strike, but home plate umpire Charlie Ramos missed it.

Bibee: “If you don’t throw a certain pitch for a strike, as soon as they see that pitch come out of the hand, they’re just gonna go, ‘OK, I’m not going to swing.’ At that point, they don’t even have to worry about it and they can be like, ‘OK, get that thing off my mind.’ Say I can’t throw my slider for a strike that day. He’s probably thinking, ‘Fastball, and react to something else.’ He knows that it’s there, so he has to respect it.”

Naylor: “When his fastball is going well, his slider is that much better. You really have to acknowledge it and be ready for it. When you put that in the back of a hitter’s mind, it really plays that much better.”

So how did they decide on the changeup once they got to a 2-2 count? The at-bat had to unfold precisely the way it did. They had hammered home that they were going to attack him with sliders. Springer couldn’t ignore the possibility of a fastball, given Bibee throws that pitch 48.2 percent of the time. He only throws his changeup 15.7 percent of the time, and nearly three-quarters of the time he tosses one, it’s to a left-hander, breaking away from the hitter.

Bibee: “We had spun it so many times, I think he’s definitely sitting fastball or slider. A major-league hitter can’t really sit on all pitches, because then he gets in-between on everything. So I throw my slider the most, secondary-wise, to righties, so he’s probably thinking, ‘Fastball-slider, fastball-slider, fastball-slider’ and he probably saw the pitch come in middle and he was probably like, ‘Ope, take that for a ball.’ And it just came the other way. So that’s probably one of the last things he was expecting.”

Springer seemed stunned. Bibee then retired Daulton Varsho to escape the jam en route to seven scoreless innings, which dropped his ERA to 2.92 this season.

Bibee: “Usually it either has to be first pitch, when you get a first-pitch out or a swing-and-miss. I think I threw him a first-pitch changeup in his last at-bat. (Confirmed; Springer fouled it off.) But it’s not just an on-the-fly thing. I threw him a lot of sliders the first two at-bats. I think he only saw one changeup and a heater. So if he hasn’t seen it, I might as well throw it. It was a good position to do it, 2-2. Good position. All the stars aligned.”

Naylor: “That’s amazing. That’s the big battle in the game, trying to outthink the opponent. When you have a little win like that, you have to take that and run with it.”

Bibee: “Those are the moments that make or break a lot of people, so when I get out of them, it’s definitely a nice confidence boost.”

Guardians, White Sox announcers detail brawl calls after rolling with the punches Cleveland Guardians' Jose Ramirez, center, and Chicago White Sox's Tim Anderson (7) exchange punches in the sixth inning of a baseball game Saturday, Aug. 5, 2023, in Cleveland. White Sox's Michael Kopech, left looks on. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
By Jayson Stark
5h ago

17
Save Article

So how about this: A rookie rolled into Fenway Park and did something Ted Williams never did. … A team stole eight bases in one game and still lost. … And another team gave up 11 runs in one inning and still won.

But could anything in the last week possibly have been Weirder or Wilder than that? Ho-ho-ho. Glad you asked. When the fists started flying in Cleveland last weekend, there was never any doubt where this edition of the Weird and Wild column would start. So head for a neutral corner because here we go.
Outside their box

Imagine going to a baseball game … and the Sugar Ray Leonard-“Hit Man” Hearns fight breaks out.

OK, now imagine you broadcast baseball for a living, and you’re going to work to call all those leisurely balls and strikes for your listening audience … and next thing you know, you’re at ringside of the Thrilla in Manilla.

Got the picture? Cool. Now let’s introduce you to Tom Hamilton and Jason Benetti, two of the most brilliant voices of a sport not known as “boxing” — because you know that thing I just described? It happened to them last Saturday in Cleveland.

One second, this was just another ball game — White Sox 5, Guardians 0, in the sixth inning. The next second, this happened!
(Ron Schwane / Getty Images)

It was José Ramírez versus Tim Anderson — and their friends — in the wildest baseball fight of the 21st century … for the next 14 minutes. And it somehow turned into the most famous call in the life of the great Tom Hamilton, the amazing radio voice of the Guardians. Can that be possible, considering the epic calls that this man has made in his 34 seasons in Cleveland?

“Yeah,” Hamilton conceded (with a laugh) to the Weird and Wild column. “But I don’t know that that’s a good thing.”

Meanwhile in NBC Sports Chicago’s White Sox booth, Benetti and his partner, Steve Stone, found themselves trying to figure out how to put this surreal melee into words … and then keep on doing that, for 14 minutes.

“The thing that was striking to both of us was how long it went,” Benetti said. “It was like the ‘Ben Hur’ or the ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ of baseball fights. There was an intermission. Like ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ has an intermission (in the middle of a marathon 1960s Hollywood extravaganza). And so did the fight — twice. Like, we should have been able to get Junior Mints for $1.95.”

Maybe you weren’t able to watch or listen to their calls of this not-scripted-by-Hollywood basebrawl spectacular, for all 14 minutes. But if not, it’s your lucky day, because this column watched it for you, every single haymaker-filled moment.

So now let’s take you to the booth, because this was broadcasting gold. Sorry, Junior Mints not included.

Was that a double — or a TKO?

The box score play-by-play tells you all you need to know, right? José Ramírez, RBI double to right field. Um, wrong! Tom Hamilton tells you all you really need to know:

“Jos-ey and Anderson square off. They’re fighting. They’re swinging. Down goes Anderson. Down goes Anderson.”

Holy Rocky Marciano. How freaking great was that?

“I was lucky,” Hamilton said.

Wait. He was lucky? No, he’s a genius. But he was lucky, he said, because it was such a close play at second base that he trained his eyes on the action all the way through the play, to make sure Ramírez was safe. So when the boxing match busted out, he was on it.

WEIRD AND WILD: “Quick question: Have you ever called a boxing match?”

HAMILTON: “No. And absolutely no interest.”

But when the heavyweight championship baseball bout of the world busted out, he was all over it. And what was incredible was that his pause between the baseball play-by-play and the boxing play-by-play was, what — a millisecond?

HAMILTON: “I had to pause for a second. You can’t say it out loud, but you’re like, ‘Oh my lord, is he dropping his gloves?’ … And then, basically your instincts are what you do for a living. You’re literally doing play-by-play. It just happened to be a different sport than the one I started the night doing.”

BENETTI: “He went total boxing. I will tell you, Tom knew right away — and I didn’t. I did not know that that swing landed as hard as it did. … I honestly didn’t know that was the knockout punch I was watching in real time, because I’m watching the benches spill, too. … So I didn’t land the punch. Tom landed the punch.”

Oh, yeah. Tom Hamilton landed the punch, all right (figuratively speaking, that is). In fact, he went full Don Dunphy/Howard Cosell on us — pretty much instantaneously slipping into ringside blow-by-blow mode. His transition from “headfirst slide” to “Down goes Anderson” takes under 10 seconds. How’d he do that anyway?

His mind magically produced Down goes Anderson — and what’s fascinating about that is that it perfectly echoes the legendary Cosell call of George Foreman pummeling Joe Frazier in 1973. Hamilton is well aware of that echo. But when I asked, “Where in your baseball brain did that come from?” he wasn’t sure. The whole thing just flowed out of his vocal cords “spontaneously,” he said.

HAMILTON: “I certainly wasn’t thinking about Howard Cosell. I wasn’t thinking about George Foreman. I wasn’t thinking about Joe Frazier when that moment was unveiling itself, because it happens so instantly. But we’re a product of when we grew up or what age we are. I’m sure if you’re under 40 years of age, you think George Foreman has a grill. You didn’t even realize that he was one of the most ferocious heavyweights there for a period of time.

“But anybody that grew up in that era of the ’60s certainly knew about Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier and, obviously, then George Foreman knocking down Joe Frazier — and Howard Cosell (calling that six-knockdown classic). I’m sure there is probably a generation of people listening or watching that have never heard of Howard Cosell. … But that was one of the great lines that Cosell ever came up with.”

Ah, but how did Tom Hamilton come up with Down goes Anderson in that moment? He has been trying to explain the mysteries of the human brain since he spoke those words. He’s still working on it.

HAMILTON: “Why it came to me at that point, I have no idea. …”

WEIRD AND WILD: “But it sounds like you think that that Howard Cosell call was up there in your brain somewhere?”

HAMILTON: “It must have been.”

He then waxed poetically about some of the greatest calls in sportscasting history — about Vin Scully, about Al Michaels in Lake Placid. You know the ones. What made them special, Hamilton said, was that they were total originals.

HAMILTON: “So what you never want to do is, you really don’t want to imitate other people’s calls. So in a sense, I violated that rule. I just don’t know why. It is such a blur that night because it happened so quickly and so unexpectedly. Why that came to me? Again. I think we’re a product of when we grew up and what we heard. And why do you remember that over maybe something else? I have no idea.”
Enjoy that free backpack, folks, and that free-for-all
(Ken Blaze / USA Today)

Another great moment in broadcasting from Tom Hamilton arrived 12 minutes into the “festivities.” There were still players and coaches milling around the field, trying to absorb what had just happened. The umpires were conferring, trying to figure out who to eject. But there was something else going on if you listen closely. There was a sound.

What was it? It was an audible buzz still rippling through the ballpark in Cleveland, from 35,823 spectators who were having themselves a night. So Hamilton decided it was time to let them know exactly how memorable a night they’d really had.

“How about the folks that came to tonight’s game? They get a free — I don’t know, some kind of a backpack or whatever. A cheap beer. They’ve got a live concert coming up. And they’ve got Rock N’ Blast (the postgame fireworks show). And a fight broke out. So it doesn’t get much better than that.”

Well, that summed up the evening succinctly.

WEIRD AND WILD: “Did you feel a need at that moment to go kind of big picture?”

HAMILTON: “You know, at some point, you’re trying to have a little fun with it, because we ARE in the entertainment business. And while you don’t want to see fights in baseball like that, that was a unique one. So we’re just kind of trying to wrap it all up while that poor umpiring crew — I don’t know how you end up figuring out who gets ejected and who doesn’t get ejected after a brawl like that.”

Hamilton then moved onward, to figure it out right along with them.

“So the two combatants, Tim Anderson and José Ramírez, have both been ejected. And the two managers have both been ejected. After that, you might not have been able to finish the game if you ejected everybody else who was involved in what is one of the best baseball donnybrooks that we have ever seen.”

WEIRD AND WILD: “Did you feel there like it was time to just drag everybody into this mess?”

HAMILTON: “Well, at that point, there weren’t a lot of innocent parties.”
Caution: Two-way tunnel ahead

At about the same time, once it was clear that the Wrestlemania portion of the evening was over, there wasn’t much reason for all those evacuees from the two bullpens to keep hanging out on the field. But as they headed back from whence they came, Benetti’s keen eyes jumped all over another hilariously absurd post-brawl moment.

Fourteen relievers arrived back at the two bullpens in center field — and had to use the same (and only) door to return to their respective bullpen havens.

“Perfect time for everybody to use the same tunnel,” Benetti deadpanned, over shots of all those relievers politely and peacefully letting each other slip through the door and up the joint rampway … moments after they’d just been wrestling with each other on the field.

Hey, when you have 14 minutes of non-baseball play-by-play time to fill, and you’re as good at this gig as Jason Benetti, you look for the incongruous moments that light up the night. And on the 1-to-10 scale of basebrawl incongruity, this was a 10.

WEIRD AND WILD: “I couldn’t help but notice you had your eyes on the two bullpens, when all those relievers were going back through the same door. What made that stick out?”

BENETTI: “Oh, yeah. I mean, it’s hilarious that we had a shot of them going, ‘OK, you go first,’ like a merge on a highway, right? It was like, one (Guardian) and then one (White Sox) and then one and then one. I was like: What is this? This is so darkly funny that I want to see this over and over again. That was one of my favorite parts of it.”
And don’t forget that 27th double
(Ken Blaze / USA Today)

Another fantastic Tom Hamilton moment. We were seven minutes or so into the melee. Some semblance of peace had been restored. The voice of the Guardians arose to set the scene.

The umpires were meeting, he reported. Players were going to be thrown out of this game, he assumed (correctly). José Ramírez was kneeling on the second-base bag, he noticed. Then here it came …

“Jos-ey with his 27th double and 65th RBI.”

I tried to imagine Cosell taking a breath between Frazier knockdowns to mention: And the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 14 points today.

But truly, this was Hamilton at his finest, recapping everything that had just transpired, from the extracurricular fisticuffs to the extra-base-hit leaderboard.

HAMILTON: “You know, you also have to keep in mind that not everybody has been tuned into the game. Prior to the fight, especially when you’re doing games on radio, people are tuning in, tuning out. They’re in and out of their cars, or whatever they might be doing on a summer night and whatnot. And so you can’t assume they know what happened. …

“And you also wanted to keep in mind that we have an audience that’s tuning into a baseball game. So we’d better keep them updated on what the hell has happened in addition to the fight.”
‘Just what Tom Hamilton wants’
(Ron Schwane / Getty Images)

There was so much more baseball/boxing/broadcast poetry. … Hamilton recalling an old Pedro Martinez-Manny Ramirez mound-charging fracas … Benetti and Stone trying to place this fight on the Richter Scale of all the fight-night earthquakes Stone has witnessed in his 50-plus years around the game … Hamilton watching Jose Tena trot out to second base to make his big-league debut by pinch running for a guy who just got ejected in a brawl and observing:

“He’s going to be able to tell his mom and dad, ‘I made my major-league debut after a brawl — and I wasn’t involved.’”

But finally, Jason Benetti unfurled a very special touch — by paying homage to Tom Hamilton’s greatness in the most subtle way imaginable.

The game was actually going to resume. The first pitch came steaming at the hitter, Oscar Gonzalez, who fouled it straight back. Benetti described it like this:

“And here’s the first one. Back underway. It’s fouled just to our right — and just what Tom Hamilton wants over there. It’s a souvenir for calling 18 minutes of Fight Night.”

WEIRD AND WILD: “I almost felt like you paid tribute to Tom a little bit there. Did you?”

BENETTI: “Yeah. And the funny thing is, I had no idea what he’d said … what his call was (of that fight). But I figured he was into it. … I love Tom Hamilton. And I’m just really glad I got to call that same thing that he got to call.”

After this game, of course, one of the first things Benetti did was what millions of baseball fans around the globe are still doing: He couldn’t wait to listen to Hamilton’s call of this boxing match: Down goes Anderson. Down goes Anderson. Wow.

BENETTI: “It was like he’s been waiting to do that for his entire career. I love Tom Hamilton dearly. I think he is amazing — as an entertainer, as a person. And that moment was written for his sensibility.”

So I had one last question for the great Tom Hamilton.

WEIRD AND WILD: “Tyson Fury is the current WBA heavyweight champion. If HBO were to come to you after this and say, ‘You’re the man we want to call his next title defense,’ what do you say? Any interest?”

HAMILTON (laughing heartily): “We can all be bought.”

He waited for the imaginary rim shot to clang. Then he spoke the humble words of a man who is living the dream just by being allowed to tell the residents of Ohio about these baseball games he’s paid to watch.

HAMILTON: “No, I’m good just doing what I’m doing. I’m just trying to hang on to THIS job.”

Well, you have to like his chances of hanging on to this job. But all we know, here at Weird and Wild International HQ, is … the boxing world doesn’t know what it’s missing.

A little speculation here.




Guardians: 3 players who won't be on the roster by September 1



Story by Zach Pressnell •
17h

Aug 11



© Provided by Fansided

Despite being a few games under .500, the Cleveland Guardians still have a chance to make the playoffs in 2023 if they can continue to improve their roster.

Although the Cleveland Guardians sold at the deadline, moving pieces like Amed Rosario, Aaron Civale and Josh Bell, they still find themselves in the middle of a potential playoff race.

The AL Central is historically bad this season and it's leaving the door open for the Guardians to make a playoff push.

The front office's job is to do what's best for the franchise and they likely did that by selling. The players job's are to go out there and win baseball games (or boxing matches in Jose Ramirez's case) to the best of their ability, no matter the direction of the front office.

With that being said, the Guardians front office needs to make some moves with the roster to put the players in the best position to do their job to end this year.

Guardians rumors: Michael Kelly will be optioned to Triple-A this month
If the Guardians are going to make a playoff push this year, their roster is going to need to improve on some pitching, either elevating guys to the major leagues or returning them from the injured list. At some point, Cleveland looks to have Shane Bieber and Triston McKenzie back, with Cal Quantrill likely returning to the team sooner than those other two. With all these returning players as well as some top-level prospects on the rise, a few of the Guardians pitchers will need to lose their roster spots, especially in the bullpen.

The first name of note is Michael Kelly.

He's likely the first pitcher to see himself moved from the roster because he still has options remaining on his contract, meaning he can be moved to Triple-A rather than released. The 30-year-old hasn't been great this year and has shown some obvious signs of control issues, seen by his seven walks in 10 innings in 2023.


Top 30 prospect, Joey Cantillo has made his case to make his MLB debut, either as a starter in a 6-man rotation or in the bullpen. Either scenario will result in Michael Kelly being the active Guardian to be optioned.

Guardians rumors: Gabriel Arias should be optioned back to Triple-A this month
The Guardians have been rather aggressive in promoting and elevating their top prospects to the MLB in recent memory. They constantly have one of the youngest teams in the entire league, putting out lineups with only one player over the age of 30. But with this aggression, they need to understand when a player isn't quite ready and demote him in order to make room for another prospect to get his chance.

The most obvious case of this with Cleveland is with the utility man Gabriel Arias, who's slashing .193/.288/.315 on the season. While Arias is in the MLB producing like this, Cleveland has prospects that could take his place and potentially produce much better if given the chance. While some of their top prospects haven't been playing great in Triple-A, Cleveland has seen smooth transitions to the MLB in the past.

Either way, Gabriel Arias has shown this year that he isn't quite ready for major league pitching just yet. His career is long from over and he remains tremendously talented and has a high ceiling. A demotion back to Triple-A could be beneficial for him as well, giving him the opportunity to see everyday playing time and find his swing again.

Guardians rumors: Daniel Norris needs to be off the Cleveland roster soon
There are two directions that the Guardians could go in and both of these options result in Daniel Norris ending up off the roster. If they are looking towards the future, fully and intently, they need to begin bringing more of their young prospects up and exposing them to MLB talent in order to see how they do.

These pitchers that could receive this kind of promotion include the mentioned Joey Cantillo, who could replace Norris as a lefty on the Guardians roster, as well as Daniel Espino. Espino may be the highest ceiling prospect in their entire farm system.

Norris has put together a long and successful career in the MLB so far, but his prime years appear to be behind us and his production certainly doesn't mean much for the future of the Guardians. They would be better fit to win games with some of their high-ceiling prospects getting their exposure in the big leagues rather than trotting out a veteran lefty that has shown time and time again that he is the same pitcher he was in years past.

Cleveland has been aggressive with the promotion of their prospects, so it should be fully expected that this trend continues with their pitchers this season.

I don't think there is a need to get Cantillo up this year, although I wouldn't object. He has been great some nights but inconsistent in his AAA debut. If we had unlimited promotions available after Sept 1 I would add him; what;s the roster limit now 28?

Kelly and Norris are both not bad members of the bullpen. But I think they need to give Karinchak a return trip to see how much he's improved.

Tanner Bibee



Don't count Guardians out of AL Central race yet

Jeff Schudel, The News-Herald, Willoughby, Ohio

Sat, Aug 12, 2023, 1:46 PM CDT

Aug. 12—All hope seemed to evaporate when the Guardians lost two of three games to the White Sox last weekend and then lost to the Blue Jays on Aug. 7 to fall 5.5 games out of first place in the American League Central Division.

But with 45 games still to play, the Guards have one thing going for them — the Twins.

The Twins succumb to pressure the way an ice cube melts on an Arizona sidewalk in August.

Minnesota's 5.5-game bulge over the Guardians just a few days ago was its largest of the season. So how did the Twins respond? While the Guardians, behind superb starting pitching, gathered themselves to take two of the last three games from Toronto, the Twins were losing three straight games to the Tigers. That put the deficit for the Guards at 3.5 games heading to their three-game series with the Rays in Tampa.

The Guardians rallied for three runs in the top the ninth inning to tie the Rays, 8-8, only to lose 9-8 on a walkoff home run by Wander Franco. Not to worry. The Twins lost their fourth straight when they were crushed by the Phillies, 13-2.

The AL Central is a lousy division — the worst of the six in the Major Leagues. The team that eventually does win it could do so with a sub.-500 record. That has never happened.

The 2005 Padres won the NL West with a record of 82-80, five games better than the second-place Diamondbacks (77-85). The Padres were swept by the Cardinals in the first round to finish 82-83, thus becoming the only playoff team to end up with a losing record when playoffs are included.

The Guardians and Twins meet six more times this season — three in Minnesota from Aug. 28-30 and three in Cleveland from Sept 4-6.

The Guardians were 68-61 on Sept. 1 last year. The Twins were a game behind at 67-62. The Guards caught fire and finished 24-9. The Twins went in the opposite direction, finishing 11-22.

A different group of youngsters is keeping the Guardians in the race this season. Four players in the starting lineup in the 4-3 victory over the Blue Jays on Aug. 10 are rookies — catcher Bo Naylor, third baseman Brayan Rocchio, shortstop Jose Tena and left fielder Will Brennan.

First baseman Kole Calhoun has been in the majors since 2012, but he has been with the Guardians only since Aug. 4. The Guards sent cash to the Dodgers for Calhoun because they need someone to play first base while Josh Naylor recovers from a strained oblique.

Ramon Laureano, the starting right fielder in the Aug. 10 game, was claimed off waivers from the A's on Aug. 7. The next night he doubled home the only run of the game when the Guardians beat Toronto, 1-0.

Noah Syndergaard, the pitcher acquired from the Dodgers, has started three games for the Guardians. He pitched well in two of them. The middle game was a clunker in which he allowed four home runs in a loss to the White Sox.

The numbers indicate the Guardians are not good enough to win the division. Their largest lead all season was a half-game July 13. They have never been more than three games over .500, and that was back on April 15 when they were 9-6. The most glaring stat that illustrates their scoring deficiency is they are 14-45 when they score three or fewer runs. That means they have scored three or fewer runs in 52% of their games.

Las Vegas has written off the Guardians, for sure. As of Aug. 11, betonline.org listed the Twins at minus-900 to win the AL Central, meaning a bettor would have to wager $900 to win $100 (and get his $900 back). The Guardians are plus-450, meaning a $100 bet on Cleveland would fetch a $450 profit if the Guardians win the division. The third-place Tigers are plus-5,000.

Still, with the Twins as the only competition in the division, there is always the chance Guardians can shock the world.

—It is a tribute to the completely revamped starting rotation that the Guardians are still in the race. Triston McKenzie, Shane Bieber and Cal Quantrill remain on the injured list. Aaron Civale was traded to the Rays on July 31. Zach Plesac is pitching in Columbus and not part of the 40-man roster.

Despite that, on the strength of Tanner Bibee (8-2, 2.92 ERA), Gavin Williams (1-3, 2.90) and Logan Allen (5-5, 3.55), the Guardians' starters have allowed two or fewer runs in 21 of 27 starts since the All-Star break.

Prior to the game with Toronto on Aug. 10, Guardians starters since July 14, the unofficial start of the second half of the season, rank first in ERA (2.59), first in opponent's batting average (.214) and first in hits allowed per nine innings (6.92).

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