Padres sign right-handed hitter who would have fit perfectly in Guardians’ lineup 

While the Ceveland Guardians ended the 2025 season by winning their second straight American League Central title, they still ended the year with an imperfect lineup. 

Perhaps the biggest imperfection came in the form of their outfield picture, which got to be so bad that the Guardians’ front office elected to pull the Chase DeLauter ripcord and call him up despite the fact that he had yet to appear in a big league game in his career. 

And while the presence of DeLauter has been one of the biggest reasons the Guardians stayed away from bringing in a big league free agent outfielder this offseason, that thinking led to them missing out on plenty of quality outfielders who were lingering in free agency. 

One of those options was outfielder Miguel Andujar, who signed a one-year deal with the Padres last week despite having the kind of skillset the Guardians desperately need. 

Perfect Guardians free agent target Miguel Andujar signs with Padres

At one point early in his career, Andujar looked like he was going to be a part of the Yankees’ long-term core. After making his debut by playing in five games in 2017, Andujar became a household name in 2018 when he hit .297 with 27 home runs and 92 RBI in 149 games en route to finishing second in the AL Rookie of the Year voting behind Shohei Ohtani. 

But then things changed. First there were the bevy of injuries in 2019. Then the pandemic-shortened 2021 season where he played in just 21 games. By the time he was back healthy in 2022, he had already been passed on the Yankees depth chart by a variety of young players, which led to the Bronx Bombers electing to designate him for assignment after the season. 

And after a 2023 season with the Pirates and a season-and-a-half with the Athletics, Andujar emerged from the baseball wilderness in the second half last season after being acquired by the Reds. It didn’t take long for him to become one of Terry Franconca’s favorites. 

Andjuar posted a .359/.400/.544 slashline in 34 games with the Reds last year to go along with four home runs and 17 RBI while the Reds made a wild run toward a National League Wild Card spot. 

The right-handed hitting Andjuar did most of his damage against left-handed pitching (.389 average in 93 plate appearances), which was a clear problem for the Guardians last season. 

While Cleveland’s decision to not add an everyday option to the mix was smart, Andjuar stood out as an obvious platoon option who would have added some much-needed variety to an outfield led by left-handed hitters in DeLauter, George Valera, Nolan Jones and Steven Kwan. 

But now he’s going to spend 2026 on the West Coast thanks to the $4 million deal he signed with the Padres that includes a $1.5 million salary for 2027. 

While the Padres will likely use him on the infield (he started his career as an infielder), he would have been a cheap option for the Guardians in their outfield. 

Even if the Guardians have some inspiring options to lean on in their outfield, there’s now going to be even more pressure on them to produce.