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5 players the Cleveland Guardians should avoid in free agency

By James Mastrucci |
San Francisco Giants v Cleveland Guardians
San Francisco Giants v Cleveland Guardians / Jason Miller/GettyImages
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With the success of the Cleveland Guardians in 2024, everyone is well aware of what they must do in the offseason. Add players who can positively impact this roster, which will allow them to capitalize on their contention window. While it is easy and honestly more fun to identify players who the Guardians should look to acquire, participating in a similar exercise, which determines who they avoid in free agency, would produce the following five results.

1. Patrick Corbin: Washington Nationals - Starting PItcher

It was just a few years that Patrick Corbin was one of the most sought-after free agents, signing a six-year $140 million contract with the Washington Nationals. The investment made by the Nationals paid off immediately, as Corbin was a key cog in their rotation as they won the franchise's first-ever World Series Championship. Unfortunately for the Nationals, it has been all downhill from that point.

Since putting up a 3.25 ERA, 1.183 WHIP, and 10.6 strikeouts per nine in 2019, Corbin's numbers have nosedived. In the following five seasons, Corbin's ERA and WHIP have skyrocketed to 5.62 and 1.535, respectively, in addition to his K/9 cratering to 7.2. If the decline in performance was not bad enough, Corbin's contract being backloaded made it one of the worst in MLB.

At age 35, with his performance in steep decline, it would be wise for the Guardians to avoid Corbin in free agency as it does not seem like any sort of late-career turnaround is on the table.

2. Mitch Haniger: Right Fielder - Seattle Mariners

Getting some help in the outfield should be somewhat of a priority for the Cleveland Guardians this offseason. Sure, Steven Kwan is a stud in left field, but the rest of the group leaves something to be desired. There was a time not long ago that Seattle Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger would have made sense for the Guardians, but that time has since passed.

Injuries and poor performance have been the main culprits preventing Haniger from being the impact player he appeared to be all the way back in 2018. Since then, Haniger has failed to appear in more than 63 games in three of the five seasons he has played in (Haniger sat out 2020).

While the 2021 season did appear that Haniger had his career back on track (.253/.318/.485 slash line, 39 home runs, 23 doubles, and 122 OPS+ in 157 games), he has failed to match that success in the following seasons. From 2022 to 2024, Haniger's slash line has dropped to .218/.287/.368, while he has only managed to hit 33 doubles and 29 home runs in 239 games.

At this point in his career, Haniger is too much of a risk to be under consideration for the full-time outfield bat the Guardians truly need.

3. Kyle Hendricks: Starting Pitcher - Chicago Cubs

Much like the previously mentioned entry of Patrick Corbin, Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks has seen better days. Up until the age of 30, Hendricks was basically guaranteed to deliver an impressive start every five days, but things have not been the same since then.

From his age 31 season through his age 34 season, Hendricks' ERA sits at 4.80 while his WHIP is up to 1.328, both notable increases over what came earlier in his career (3.12 ERA and 1.105 WHIP). Yes, some decrease in effectiveness is expected at this point in most player's careers, and for someone who has the pitching style of Hendricks, it is particularly troubling as he is only going to become more hittable as he continues to pitch.

Even though there is a chance the Guardians could find themselves in a similar position as they did last year, needing to take fliers on arms that nobody really expected. However, they should be looking at options that have a lot more upside than what Hendricks can provide at this point in his career. To put it simply, going down this path will not produce the type of results needed to justify doing so.

4. Harrison Bader: Center Fielder - New York Mets

When assessing the state of the Cleveland Guardians outfield, it is very clear that they should be looking to find a way to improve upon their current group. Steven Kwan is the only outfielder on the roster deserving of full-time play, while the others are made up of part-time and platoon options. But when it comes to looking for an everday player in the outfield, Harrison Bader is not it.

Bader has dealt with injuries and underwhelming play throughout his career, with just three of his eight major league seasons with an OPS+ above 100, the point which indicates an average player at the plate, and those three came during his first five years as a pro. When looking at his career slash line, it is not particularly impressive, sitting at .242/.306/.392, with most years hovering around that general mark.

There is nothing more really here from him as a hitter, and expecting him to change or suddenly go on a power surge would leave you disappointed. What you see is what you get with Bader, and that would be a redundant addition when compared to the rest of their outfield mix.

5. Eloy Jimenez: Baltimore Orioles.- Designated Hitter

Back in 2019, when Eloy Jimenez burst onto the scene for the Chicago White Sox, it appeared the Cleveland Guardians were going to have a perpetual thorn in their side for the foreseeable future. And while Jimenez did manage to have some productive seasons in Chicago, his full potential was never reached due to injuries and eventually, a noticeable decline in his performance at the plate.

This past season saw Jimenez completely fall off a cliff production-wise, putting up a career-worst .238/.289/.336 slash line to go with career-lows in home runs (6), RBI (23), and OPS+ (81) in 98 games with the White Sox and Baltimore Orioles. For those who thought his lack of production was due to being in Chicago, his performance in Baltimore was actually worse, making their decision to decline his $16.5 million option.

It would be one thing if the Guardians were on the complete opposite end of the competitive spectrum, such as Jimenez's former team in Chicago, taking a chance on hoping he can put it together would be worth it. However, Cleveland needs to find a way to lengthen their lineup, and trying to do so with someone who has become ineffective with a bat in his hands is not the approach to take here.

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