2 former Guardians from 2023 that will be missed this season and 4 they are better off without

Cleveland Guardians v Minnesota Twins
Cleveland Guardians v Minnesota Twins | David Berding/GettyImages
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Player Who Will Not Be Missed: Mike Zunino

The logic behind signing Mike Zunino before last season was sound. Cleveland's lineup needed power, and Zunino is someone who had four 20+ home run seasons under his belt and even hit 33 in his last season with over 100 appearances. The problem was that Zunino's days of being that type of hitter appeared to be a distant memory.

Zunino had one of his worst seasons as a pro during his 42 games in Cleveland, with a slash line of .177/.271/.306. While nobody was expecting the veteran backstop to contend for a batting title, the lack of power output from Zunino (seven doubles, three home runs) was not enough to justify his time with the Guardians being extended.

The good news is that Zunino not being able to perform (eventually) led to catching prospect Bo Naylor's arrival. The younger Naylor easily surpassed Zunino's power numbers (13 doubles and 11 home runs) in his 62 games of play. So, in a way, Zunino flopping big time was a good thing when evaluating how things played out last season. If he was able to hit for power consistently, there is a good chance that Naylor is still blocked from the major league roster as things stand currently.

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