The Guardians just saved a substantial amount of money and have the chance to solidify their future with it.
The Cleveland Guardians’ offseason plan after the 2024 season has been a conundrum for many, to say the least.
Although the Guardians made their way to the AL Championship Series in 2024, Chris Antonetti, Mike Chernoff and co. saw that maybe changes to the lineup, overall approach and financial strategy of the team were still necessary.
The dominoes started falling when the organization traded away Eli Morgan, who is making $950,000 in arbitration this year, to the Chicago Cubs for outfielder prospect Alfonsin Rosario.
Then the front office made an incredibly unprecedented move, trading to the Blue Jays a beloved player in Andres Gimenez, who was under contract through at least 2029, and Nick Sandlin, who is set to receive $1.6 million this year. The Guardians were able to get a return of Nick Mitchell and Spencer Horwitz. Horwitz was then able to be flipped to the Pirates for righty Luis Ortiz and two other pitching prospects with him.
The third big trade of the winter was predicted by many, as another beloved player, Josh Naylor, was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for righty pitcher Slade Cecconi and a competitive balance round B draft pick. Josh is receiving $10.5 million in arb this year before his contract expires. Shortly after, Antonetti gave 1B Carlos Santana a second reunion with Cleveland after he left in the 2020 offseason, signing him to a one-year, $12 million contract.
Fast forward to January 17, and the Guardians lifted Myles Straw’s contract off their shoulders in another deal with the Toronto baseball club, throwing in the money for his $1.75 million buyout in the 2027 season. The last piece the Guardians threw into the trade was $2 million in international bonus pool money, to help the Blue Jays’ push for Japanese star Roki Sasaki (who ultimately ended up signing with the Dodgers later that day).
The two trades including Andres Gimenez and Josh Naylor left some of the fans wondering what the direction actually is for a team that just got to the ALCS. However, many are saying that this offseason has been a wise series of moves to both save money and reallocate funds and assets to acquire more sustainable options that can help the squad.
As for the financial situation, the Guardians were able to save a hefty load of money, especially with the Andres Gimenez trade. His contract earnings through 2030 are set to be approximately $10.5 mil/$15.5 mil/$23.5 mil/$23.5 mil/$23.5 mil/$23 mil (Club Option). Sandlin’s aforementioned contract to avoid arb was approximately $1.6 million, with 2 remaining years and the salary likely going up further than that. The team also saved $950K through the Eli Morgan Trade as well.
At the end of the Josh Naylor trade and Santana signings, the Guardians actually ended up losing $1.1 million, assuming that Josh would’ve signed for $10.9 million in Cleveland had they kept him. Lastly, Myles Straw’s contract earnings over the next couple years are approximately $6.4 mil/$7.5 mil/$8 mil (Club Option)/ $8.5 mil (Club Option).
If the Guardians exercise the club options, and assuming arb deals after 2025 stay the same at the very least, the approximate total money the team will be saving through 2030 will be at least $18.4 mil/$25.5 mil/$33.5 mil/$31.5 mil/$23.5 mil/$23 mil.
This in mind, the Guardians now have a lot of room to play with in terms of salary allocation. Of course, there is always the question that every Cleveland fan asks, “Will we do it this time?” no one could know besides Paul Dolan and the rest of the Guardians’ front office, but here are a few things to watch for.
This could definitely be a preparation for extension season during Spring Training, with all eyes on hopefully locking up Steven Kwan for the future. A couple other extensions that many have speculated would be with Lane Thomas, Tanner Bibee and maybe sophomore Cade Smith. Whether these happen or not are unknown, but with a lot of extra room in the tank, the Guardians can set their squad in stone even further down the line.
The free agent market is also wide open as well, and the Guardians might want to pursue an outfielder to fill that right field spot. With Anthony Santander still being available, he might be the only great option left in the free agent market for the Guards. The chances of this happening, however, aren’t as high as some of these other possibilities in the list.
Lastly, and probably the worst-case scenario, is that the Guardians needed to do this to make up for a possible revenue drop with the broadcasting fiasco that’s went on over the last few years. This is just speculatory, but the cancelling of Guards Fest in 2025 and making it a bi-annual event can be a telling factor if this turns out to be true.
The Guardians clearly had a lot to think about with the team as the offseason progressed. This may not be the direction that many have wanted them to take, but it is the direction they took and they are keeping all factors in mind. A slew of hard and easy decisions were made, and they wouldn’t make this decisions without trusting the guys that they have right now.
The best course of action here as a fan is patience. The Guardians may have even greater things planned with the money they’ve now saved up, and the guys they have next in line on the roster are very capable. Either way, Antonetti is a guy that many in the city of Cleveland are fully trusting, so if he has got that greater plan in mind, then it will most likely come to fruition.