Guardians linked to Gold Glove-winning free agent who is dipping into utility roots 

Even though we’re less than a week away from the start of spring training, there’s still a variety of free agents still lingering on the market. 

One of those players is veteran Ty France, who is reportedly open to a position change for 2026, which seems to have caught the Guardians’ attention. 

The news around France’s future for 2026 first came into the zeitgeist on Wednesday when The Athletic’s Will Sammon and Katie Woo published a trade rumor roundup where they included a blurb at the bottom that said that some teams have asked France to play second base next season. 

Less than 24 hours later, MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reported that France had a “robust trade market” while writing that the Padres, Guardians and Rockies are among the teams interested in France. 

If we’re to read between the lines of those two reports, it stands to reason that the Guardians may have been one of those teams interested in France playing second base, which makes sense given how much the Guardians love having utility players on their bench. 

Guardians are among teams interested in Gold Glove infielder Ty France 

Last season France played in 138 games between his time with the Twins and Blue Jays and ended up finishing with a .257/.320/.360 with seven home runs and 52 RBI. And while he won the American League Gold Glove at first base, it looks like some interested teams are considering moving him around the infield. 

That won’t be anything new to France, who initially came up as a third baseman before turning into an almost full-time first baseman in 2021. But Sammon and Woo wrote that he still warms up at first base, second base and third base before games, so he still has the muscle memory needed to succeed at all three positions. 

It’s easy to see why the Guardians would consider going after France given how easy it theoretically would be to fit him on the roster. Not only could be a right-handed platoon complement to Kyle Manzardo at first, but he could also come off the bench late in the game or get the occasional spot start at second or third. 

But that still doesn’t mean the Guardians should go after him. While the Guardians have an uninspiring middle infield picture, they have Juan Brito and Travis Bazzana waiting in the wings in the minors. Adding France to that picture would make things more difficult for all of them. 

And it’s not like France is a world-beater either. He authored an All-Star season for the Mariners in 2022, but has hit just .247 in 436 games since. 

The time for external upgrades has passed. The Guardians’ roster has some clear holes, but we’re at a point where those holes should be filled by internal options.