2 Guardians offseason decisions that look genius, 2 that look awful

The Cleveland Guardians offseason was a test in patience. 

As teams from around MLB made marquee signing after marquee signing, the Guardians’ front office improved the bullpen on the margins while leaving the position player group largely untouched. 

Some of those moves seemed confusing at the time, but they’ve looked like geniuses thanks to a fantastic 30-22 start that has them sitting in the catbird seat in the American League Central. 

Here are four moves they made (or didn’t make) that have defined the first quarter of the season

The Guardians’ decision to sign Rhys Hoskins looks genius 

 On Feb. 23, the Guardians added some offensive reinforcement to their roster by signing Hoskins to a minor league deal. While it wasn’t the big signing Guardians fans had been begging for, it’s turned into a win. 

While Hoskins is hitting just .192, he has an on-base percentage of .353 on the back of 27 walks, which is the fifth-most among first baseman. 

Although he hasn't has as much pop as you'd expect (.375 slugging percentage), he’s still a productive player thanks to his 20.3% walk rate. 

The Guardians have also done a good job managing his playing time alongside fellow first baseman Kyle Manzardo, who has started to turn things around after a slow start to the season. 

Last year the Guardians put Manzardo in a pointless platoon with the husk of Carlos Santana; that hasn’t been the case this year. 

The Guardians’ decision to avoid a big swing this offseason looks genius 

While the Guardians remade their bullpen in the offseason, their position player additions consisted of signing Hoskins and outfielder Stuart Fairchild to minor league deals. 

It may have been frustrating at the time, but it’s clear that inaction was the right move. Instead of bringing in some expensive players who would have stood as roadblocks for the team’s youth, the Guardians have elected to give everyday playing time to young guys like Chase DeLauter, Angel Martínez and Travis Bazzana, among others. 

The Guardians have gotten off to a dominant start this season on the back of those young players, and it’s hard to believe that would have happened if they had elected to spend money on players like Harrison Bader or Luis Arraez. 

The youth movement is in full effect, and it’s been exciting to watch. 

The Guardians’ decision to bring back Nolan Jones looks awful 

The Guardians surprised all of Northeast Ohio (and Jones himself) when they decided to tender him a $2 million contract for 2026. 

That surprising decision resulted in an unsurprising decision, however, as the Guardians outrighted him off the roster at the end of spring training. 

He accepted his outright to the minors (denying it meant he would have forfeited his contract) and has posted a .258/.377/.411 slashline in 42 games in Triple-A. 

While the Guardians were smart to send him down to the minors (that helped free up everyday playing time for DeLauter), their decision to invest $2 million into him was a clear mistake. 

It wouldn’t be a surprise if Jones has played his last game with the Guardians. 

The Guardians’ decision to sign Connor Brogdon looks awful 

The Guardians kicked off that aforementioned bullpen remake by signing Connor Brogdon to a one-year, $900,000 contract at the start of the Winter Meetings. 

Although Brogdon had a career ERA of 4.36 at the time of the signing, the Guardians were intrigued by his extension and hoped they’d be able to help him translate that into big league success. 

That wasn’t the case. 

Brogdon started the season well and even picked up a save in the opening series against the Mariners, but he allowed too much hard contract and was designated for assignment after allowing two homers in 1 1/3 innings against the Royals. 

Brogdon’s a useful depth arm to have in the minors, but their decision to sign him to a big league contract was a clear misfire.

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