National MLB writer proposes Guardians make head-scratching trade for former All-Star

The 2025 season showed us plenty of things about the Guardians. José Ramírez is still a generational hitter. The outfield picture needs help. And their starting rotation is legit. 

The Guardians finished the year with a six-man rotation that was composed of veteran starters like Tanner Bibee and Gavin Williams alongside rookie starters like Parker Messick and Joey Cantillo. 

And in the end, it ended up being the perfect mix, as Cleveland’s starters had a 2.60 ERA in September to help push the Guardians to an improbable American League Central crown. 

But that strong finish to the season may not mean that the Guardians will open 2026 with the same starting rotation, as Bleacher Reporter’s Kerry Miller wrote the Guardians priority this offseason should be adding a veteran starting pitcher this offseason. 

In a new story for Bleacher Report, Miller tried predicting the most likely trade for every MLB trade this offseason. And, as mentioned above, he wrote the Guardians should trade for an established starting pitcher like the Nationals’ MacKenzie Gore. 

“Trading away Steven Kwan is on the table, but he's probably more valuable to Cleveland than he is as a trade chip, as the Guardians' window to contend for the AL Central crown is still definitely open. Last winter, they traded Josh Naylor for Slade Cecconi and may have found a solid option for the rotation. They also traded for Luis Ortiz, which ended up being a much worse gamble. But bartering for another starting arm is probably the way to go here,” Miller wrote. 

The Guardians should avoid making a trade for a starting pitcher this offseason

While the Guardians have plenty of young arms with a ton of potential, Gore is an established arm who is coming off the first All-Star nod of his career. In total, the big left-hander finished 2025 with a 4.17 ERA in 159 2/3 innings. He’s posted a 4.03 ERA across 326 innings since the start of 2024. 

A one-time top prospect with the Padres, Gore was part of the Nationals’ return for Juan Soto at the 2022 trade deadline. He’s been a quality starter for the Nationals, although his performance has flown a bit under the radar due to Washington’s overall struggles. 

Adding Gore to the starting rotation would likely push either Messick or Cantillo back to the minor leagues (if they weren’t sent elsewhere in a trade). Gore’s presence on the roster would also likely bring about the end to Logan Allen’s time on the roster considering he’s a poor man’s version of Gore. 

But that doesn’t mean this is the kind of trade the Guardians should make. In fact, it’s the kind of trade the Guardians should stay away from. While you can never have enough pitching, the Guardians are among MLB’s best at turning prospects into MLB-ready starters.

Losing Ortiz to suspension put the starting rotation, but the pieces they have now have proven they can pick up the slack. 

The Guardians will need to make a couple moves this offseason if they want to truly contend in 2026, but those moves should come in the lineup; not in the rotation.