Guardians reunite with depth catcher who saw MLB action in 2025 

The Guardians’ catching hierarchy for 2026 is pretty clear. 

Bo Naylor’s once again at the top after completing the transition from top prospect to everyday option, while Austin Hedges is back as the backup option after signing a one-year deal with the Guardians for the third straight season.

They’re followed by David Fry, who is set to serve as a utility player again in 2026 after only being able to play as a designated hitter in 2025. 

But catcher is arguably the most taxing position in all of baseball, so having some quality depth behind those two is important.

The Guardians took another step toward having some quality depth behind the two on Wednesday by signing catcher Dom Nuñez to a minor league contract with an invitation to big league spring training. 

Nuñez spent the past two seasons in the Guardians’ organization and appeared in two games with the big league club in the middle of last summer when Austin Hedges went on the concussion injured list. 

Guardians reinforce catching depth by signing Dom Nuñez to minor league contract 

While Nuñez lingered in free agency after the Guardians outrighted him after the season, he decided to re-up with a familiar organization. He appeared in 144 games at Triple-A with the Guardians across 2024 and ‘25 and has hit .188 with 14 home runs across that span while also receiving high marks for his efforts behind the plate. 

Nuñez joined Cleveland’s big league roster last year at a time when the Guardians were scuffling, and he helped hold things down as Naylor’s backup while Hedges got healthy.

The Guardians elected to keep him on the 40-man roster instead of designating him for assignment after his time on the big league roster was done, and even had him on their taxi squad for the postseason. 

Nuñez made his MLB debut in 2019 with the Rockies (who drafted him in the 2013 MLB Draft) and appeared in games for them across the 2021 and ‘22 seasons. That 2021 season stands out as his busiest MLB year, as he hit .189 with 10 home runs in 89 games. 

Even if Nuñez may be the top depth catching option in a pinch, Cooper Ingle is the top long-term option after rising the prospect rankings in 2025, although he isn’t on the 40-man roster. 

It’s hard to believe the Guardians would start Ingle’s 40-man roster clock if they needed to call a catcher up for a couple days, but he’d likely leapfrog Nuñez if they needed another catcher for a long period of time. 

Nuñez is the eighth Guardian on a minor league deal to earn an invite to big league camp alongside Carlos Hernandez, Steven Perez, Codi Heuer, Cameron Barstad, Dayan Frias, Wuilfredo Antunez and Stuart Fairchild.