10 former Cleveland Guardians who are still without a job entering Spring Training

Pitchers and catchers have reported, and Spring Training will be starting in no time. It will be only a matter of time before all the spring games are played and Opening Day is finally here. Excitement for the upcoming season is beginning to build, but not for everyone. There are still a decent amount of players without a team and looking for a team to catch on with for 2024.

A somewhat surprising amount of players in this group have spent time with the Cleveland Guardians organization at some point in their careers. There are a few of these players who have played in Cleveland as recently as this past season, while others have last put on a Cleveland uniform closer to their World Series run in 2016 than present day.

Like most unsigned free agents at in the middle of February, some of these players could be useful to teams belonging to the competitive and non-competitive variety. Meanwhile, there are others that are going to have a much more difficult time finding work. barring a team being in a complete state of desperation. Interestingly enough, either description could apply to the Guardians this season, depending on how things play out, even though very few (if any) would be welcome additions to the current roster.

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1. Amed Rosario

A lineup regular for the better part of three seasons with the Cleveland Guardians before finishing last season with the Los Angeles Dodgers following a midseason trade, Amed Rosario is in a position where he is still looking for work.

At his best, Rosario is mostly a league-average bat, possessing a career weighted runs created plus of 95. The issue is that three of his six full major league seasons have seen that number sit below 90, with one year barely above 75 (Rosario's rookie season saw a 75 wRC+ in 46 games).

The issue with Rosario is that he does not produce enough at the plate. It would be one thing if Rosario had some power in his hitting profile, being a .272 career hitter and all, but his 60 career home runs and .708 OPS in 839 games over seven years are hardly enough to justify being a lineup regular.

Complicating matters is his liability as a defender. Rosario was always considered to be a relatively average defender at best, and his deficiencies in that area were exposed following the shift being banned. The only way for Rosario to play on an everyday basis is to be surrounded by elite defenders on either side, and the teams who are going to be in the market for his services are very unlikely to have that.

2. Yu Chang

When it comes to players who appear to be enjoying every second of their time on the baseball field, Yu Chang is a picture-perfect example. The problem is that his enjoyment has never really translated to being a productive hitter in the major leagues, which is why he has been in four different organizations since the beginning of the 2022 season.

Expecting anything different from Chang being mostly a non-factor at the plate is a foolish endeavor. Chang was never a prolific hitter in the minor leagues, slashing just .253/.327/.438 in 620 career minor league games. The likelihood that Chang was going to become a lineup regular, given his track record prior to reaching the majors, was not high, despite some being staunch believers in his hitting ability.

Chang's time with the Guardians came to an end early in 2022 after being traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Since then, it has been pretty much more of the same from Chang at the plate, struggling to do much of anything, except for a 36-game stretch with the Tampa Bay Rays that saw him hit .260 with three home runs and three doubles. This was clearly an outlier as Chang reverted back to his normal self upon leaving the Rays in a stint with the Boston Red Sox which took place over two separate seasons.

3. Eddie Rosario

Every once in a while a team is able to steal a productive bat from a division rival for themselves and reap the benefits. That was the thought process behind agreeing to terms with Eddie Rosario ahead of the 2021 season.

Rosario was an absolute menace when facing Cleveland pitching, seemingly crushing anything thrown against him. With a 162-game average of 31 doubles and 28 home runs over his first six seasons (697 games from 2015-2020) while slashing .277/.310/.478, signing Rosario seemed like a slam-dunk proposition for Cleveland. The problem was that Rosario was unable to deliver and provide some much-needed power to their lineup.

It was a struggle for Rosario in his first and only season in Cleveland, seeing his slash line decrease to .254/.296/.389 with 15 doubles and seven home runs in 78 games. This was not what the organization thought they were getting, and decided to part ways with Rosario before the end of the season. Rosario was able to contribute in his new landing spot, Atlanta, by being part of an outfield by committee in the absence of Ronald Acuna Jr., eventually being crowned World Series Champions.

2023 was a nice rebound season for Rosario after struggling in an abbreviated 2022 that did not go particularly well. Rosario would hit 24 doubles and 21 home runs with 74 RBI, his highest total since 2019. The performance from last season seems like it would be very attractive to teams in need of outfield help, but it appears a level of caution is being exercised with how much his production has dropped off overall in recent years.

5. Gio Urshela

Every once in a while, there is a player who requires stops with multiple organizations before finally breaking through. That is the case when it comes to Gio Urshela. 

Urshela spent parts of two seasons on Cleveland’s major league roster but was not able to do anything noteworthy at the plate. A quick stop in Toronto followed soon after, but again, nothing special with a bat in his hand. Finally, Urshela ended up in The Bronx, and his hitting abilities were finally unlocked.

Slashing .310/.359/.523 over his first two seasons before a dip in his final season as Yankee saw his numbers drop across the board (.267/.301/.419). New York felt that a change was needed, sending Urshela and Gary Sanchez to Minnesota for Josh Donaldson, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and Ben Rortvedt. Urshela would bounce back in his lone season with the Twins, being a nice stabilizing bat for the eventual American League Central Champion Twins. 

The 2023 season saw Urshela with another new ball club following a trade, the Los Angeles Angels. Unfortunately, Urshela’s season was cut short after just 62 games due to a pelvic fracture. 

At 32 years old and coming off a major injury, it is not exactly surprising to see Urshela remain unsigned. However, he has proven to be a fairly consistent bat ever since his swing was revamped during his time in the Yankees organization. With that being said, Urshela should still be able to provide a different look to a power-heavy lineup that struggles in the batting average department. 

6. Brad Hand

In need of a left-handed arm in their bullpen with the expected departures of Andrew Miller and Cody Allen in the following offseason, Cleveland acquired Brad Hand and Adam Cimber from the San Diego Padres for catching prospect Francisco Mejia. 

Hand would eventually take over the closing role in his second season in Cleveland, a role which he would remain in until becoming a free agent following the 2020 season. Hand would lead all of baseball in saves during the 2020 campaign with 16.

Since leaving Cleveland, Hand has bounced around quite a bit. The veteran left-handed has spend time with the Washington Nationals, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays, Philadelphia Phillies, Colorado Rockies, and most recently, the Atlanta Braves. 

It has been mostly a rough go of things for Hand since his time with Cleveland came to an end, but he was able to find success in 2022 as part of the National League Champion Phillies bullpen.

The good news for Hand is that he is likely to find a new team eventually. This is due to left-handed relievers always being in demand. It really seems like a question of when and not if he finds a new team before the season begins. 

7. Brad Miller

When it comes to players on this list that fans have fond memories of, this is not an entry that fits that description. 

At best, Brad Miller was a desperation play by Cleveland. With Francisco Lindor and Jason Kipnis injured to begin the season, Miller was deployed as part of a group where the only requirement was having a pulse. 

It was a brief tenure in Cleveland, lasting just 13 games. Miller was designated for assignment following Kipnis being activated from the injured list. This did not sit well with Miller, as he was critical of the team’s decision to DFA him. 

Obviously, they don't want the best guys up there. So I'm just trying to take it somewhere else and see what we've got. 

Being confident in one’s abilities is fine, but this seems to go a bit beyond that. Kipnis was clearly a better player between the two and was not going to be bumped for playing time by Miller.

Miller has since spent time with the Philadelphia Phillies (twice), St. Louis Cardinals, and Texas Rangers over varying lengths of time with little success. There is a chance that Miller will catch on with another team, but it is unlikely to be in anything resembling a prominent role.

8. Noah Syndergaard

As far as memorable Cleveland Guardians go, Noah Syndergaard is not someone who qualifies. Syndergaard came to Cleveland in a deal that sent Amed Rosario to the Los Angeles Dodgers, and his stint in Cleveland lasted just six games.

Acquiring Thor was really a move made out of desperation rather than making a playoff push. The Guardians had a rotation filled with youngsters, and the rotation just needed someone to eat innings. While Syndergaard was able to average more than five innings per start, he was hit around relatively easily by opposing batters. This eventually led to Syndergaard being designated for assignment, followed by an outright release.

Unlike most of the players on this list, Syndergaard is currently receiving interest from multiple teams, so his time as a free agent is likely to end relatively soon. Teams are still willing to take a chance on Syndergaard despite allowing 22 home runs in 88.1 innings last season. The hope for a prospective team is that Syndergaard is able to recapture the dynamic pitching ability he once had during his tenure with the New York Mets, but as time has gone on, that appears to be a result that becomes less and less likely with each passing year.

9. Cam Gallagher

A backstop brought in to be a secondary defense-first option behind free agent flop Mike Zunino, Cam Gallagher was a relatively unexciting member of the Cleveland Guardians this past season. Gallagher appeared in only 56 games in 2023, even though it sometimes felt like he played a whole more than that. The 31-year-old veteran was designated for assignment by the Guardians following the season and decided to elect free agency.

From an offensive standpoint, expectations were relatively low for Gallagher upon coming to Cleveland. With a career slash line of .240/.302/.355 in 161 games over six seasons with the Kansas City Royals, there was hope that he would do something not completely terrible at the plate, but that was not the case.

Gallagher struggled mightily at the plate during his lone season in a Guardians uniform. Slashing just .126/.154/.168 in 149 plate appearances, it was very rare that Gallagher was able to do anything noteworthy at the plate. While a prolific season at the plate was not expected from Gallagher, this performance was far worse than anyone could have reasonably predicted.

Even though he essentially hit at the same level as a pitcher last season, his defense is what is going to get him a job is his ability as a defender. It is not necessarily the most exciting aspect of the game, but it is still beneficial to have a backstop who is not a complete liability behind the plate.

10. Josh Donaldson

An acquisiton back from when there was a seperate waiver trade deadline, Cleveland acquired Josh Donaldson from the Toronto Blue Jays in a series of events that was quite controversial. While Cleveland did not break any rules in their acquisition of Donaldson, there were a few other organizations unhappy with how the events that lead up to his departure from Toronto played out.

Donaldson appeared in just 16 games for Cleveland in 2018, totaling 14 hits including three doubles and three home runs in the regular season. Unfortunately, Donaldson was a no-show in their postseason series against Houston, going 1-12 with four strikeouts.

After his brief time in Cleveland came to an end, Donaldson has appeared in games for the Atlanta Braves, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Milwaukee Brewers with varying levels of success.

Now at 38-years old with his performance at the plate declining combined with an increase in injury frequency, it does not seem likely that the 2015 American League Most Valuable Player Award winner is going to be fielding a ton of calls about signing with a team any time soon. While Donaldson has stated he is open to playing in 2024, the fact he is still a free agent in the middle of February casts some doubt on that possibility.