The Guardians have been without their Gold Glove lead-off man over the last few games, and his absence became formal before Tuesday’s game against the Minnesota Twins. Steven Kwan was once again not in the lineup for Cleveland as he was put on the 10-Day Injured List before Tuesday’s tilt.
The move is retroactive to September 14th, meaning Kwan can be activated next Tuesday when the Guardians will be in Cincinnati to play the Reds. The team expects that Kwan’s IL stint, brought on by an inflamed back, will not extend past the minimum number of days.
Having struggled in the second half of the season, this temporary pause to Kwan’s season potentially comes at an inopportune time. Kwan had hit safely in four straight ballgames for the first time in a month in the games before first being sidelined last Friday. One would hope though that the rest and recovery could help contribute to a strong finish for the Guardians’ left-fielder.
In the meantime, an old face was added to the 40-man roster on Tuesday in an effort to replace Kwan. Myles Straw was activated from Columbus and has joined the ballclub, Straw was waived at the end of Spring Training this season and elected to accept a demotion to the minors (rather than forgo his five-year, $25 million in pursuit of free agency). He has played for Columbus over the entirety of this season, hitting .240 with three home runs and 30 stolen bases in 123 games.
The team plans to utilize Straw’s defensive skills and speed to their advantage, using him as a pinch runner and late-inning defensive replacement in center field. Unfortunately, this strategy is off to a poor start as Straw pinch ran in the 8th inning of Tuesday night’s 4-1 loss and was subsequently picked off of first base.
In order to make space on the 40-man roster for Straw, Carlos Carrasco was designated for assignment. Carrasco was an absolute gamer for the Guardians in 2024, answering the call for a depleted starting rotation and making 21 starts, and pitching 103 2/3 innings for the ballclub. While his ERA was 5.64, Carrasco’s inclusion on the team helped keep the best bullpen in baseball fresh as he ate innings in the first 2/3 of the season. His best showing this season was the six innings of one-run, four-hit ball with seven strikeouts that he pitched at home on June 21st vs. the Toronto Blue Jays.
At this point, it seems unlikely that Carrasco will be asked to take the baseball again this season. He had spent more than the last month on the Injured List himself. It is not certain, but this may be the end of an exceptional career for one of the best pitchers of the 2010s-era Indians, a team that was rife with starting pitching talent in its heyday.
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