Guardians miss out on chance to add proven veteran to rotation

When assessing the biggest concerns for the Cleveland Guardians in 2025, the lack of depth in their starting rotation stood out among the rest. Cleveland had multiple opportunities this offseason to bring in proven commodities to their staff, some of which would be of the low-cost, high-reward variety that the Guardians have taken a liking to. One arm that would have made sense for Cleveland to target is no longer on the table.

Veteran left-hander Jose Quintana agreed to a one-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday, ending any last-ditch effort to acquire his services. Milwaukee, like Cleveland, has to operate in a certain manner when it comes to signing free agents, and signing a veteran looking for work with spring training already underway can allow them to potentially get a player that can provide a ton of value at a fraction of the cost.

Quintana is coming off of a two-year stretch with the New York Mets that saw him post a 3.70 ERA and 1.268 WHIP in 44 starts. This comes after splitting the 2022 season with the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals, finishing with a 2.93 ERA and 1.213 WHIP in 165.2 innings across 32 games.

While Quintana's late-career renaissance is impressive, the reality is that it may not last. Quintana is entering his age-36 season and could see this come to an end in the near future. It is going to be difficult for Quintana to sustain this level of effectiveness with his strikeout frequency over the past two years (7.1), sitting at its lowest rate since his rookie season (5.8).

With spring training games having already begun for the Guardians, a signing of someone like Quintana would not be likely, outside of any sort of catastrophic injury to a key starter. Cleveland seems more than comfortable with running most of last year's group back while taking a couple of fliers on a few others. Hopefully, Cleveland's approach works out for the best, and they do not regret missing out on a proven arm in Quintana.