Dodgers DFA former Guardians reliever who thrived in Triple-A in 2024

While Anthony Banda never appeared in a regular season game for the Cleveland Guardians, he still counts as a one who got away for Guardians fans due to the fact he went on to become a two-time World Series champion while working out of the Dodgers’ bullpen. 

But he ended up on the wrong side of the Dodgers’ roster crunch on Friday as the defending world champions designated Banda for assignment to make room for catcher Ben Rortvedt. 

Even though it would be a bit surprising to see Banda end up back with the Guardians considering Cleveland spent the offseason remaking their bullpen, reflecting on his time with the Dodgers is yet another reminder of the mistake the Guardians made by letting him go. 

Former Guardians minor leaguer Anthony Banda designated for assignment by Dodgers 

After starting his career as a starter, Banda moved to the bullpen after a trade early in his career and ended up playing for seven teams through the first six seasons of his career. 

He broke camp with the Nationals in 2023 but was sent off their roster after seven subpar innings, which led to him being a minor league free agent. 

That led to the Guardians scooping him up in January 2024 as a minor league free agent. He gendered some buzz as a potential big league reliever, but the Guardians ended up sending him to the minors at the start of the season after he allowed seven earned runs in 10 1/3 innings in the spring.

He had some success in Triple-A (2.12 ERA in 17 innings), which was the biggest reason why the Dodgers decided to trade him in exchange for cash considerations in the middle of May. 

Los Angeles added him to their MLB roster two days later, which set off a nearly two year span where Banda was a quality middle-to-low leverage reliever for the Dodgers. 

Banda ended up recording a 3.14 ERA in 114 2/3 regular season innings with the Dodgers while also throwing 13 2/3 innings for the Dodgers across the past two postseasons. 

But there were also some red flags under the hood, which likely played a part in the Dodgers deciding to designate him for assignment. 

He had a strikeout rate of 22.8% in 2025 (which was more than a percent lower than it was the season prior) along with having his walk rate climb more than 4% to 12.7%.

While he was able to fight through those problems in the regular season, he got lit up in the postseason on the Dodgers’ journey toward a World Series title. 

But those struggles shouldn’t prevent him from landing on someone’s big league roster, even if he is out of big league options. The Dodgers tendered him a $1.62 million salary for 2026, so he’s not going to break the bank either. 

This likely won’t be the last we see of Banda in the big leagues.