Taking a look at the 3 players the Guardians added during the Winter Meetings 

The MLB Winter Meetings came to an end on Wednesday, and the Guardians were (kind of) present.

While they stayed away from making a big move (which is both a good and bad thing), they brought in three relievers to help add some much-needed depth to a bullpen that lost some key figures to injuries and free agency. 

With that in mind, here’s a look at the three relievers the Guardians added during the Winter Meetings and how they could help the Guardians in 2026. 

The Guardians added three unheralded relievers at the Winter Meetings 

RHP Connor Brogdon (signed to one-year, $900,000 deal)

The Guardians opened the Winter Meetings transaction period by signing Brogdon to a major league deal right before the start of the meetings. 

He had some success with the Phillies early in his career and is coming off a disaster year with the Angels where he had a 5.55 ERA in 47 innings while navigating through numerous injuries. He’ll likely fill one of the low-leverage roles that were previously filled by Zak Kent, Carlos Hernández or Nic Enright. 

While Brogdon’s counting stats aren’t great, he’s among the league leaders in extension (a stat that measures how close a pitcher is to the plate when they release a pitch), which is something the Guardians are prioritizing in their pitchers.

Brogdon still has two years of tram control remaining, so the Guardians would be able to hold onto him for 2027 if he pitches well next season. 

RHP Peyton Pallette (acquired in Rule 5 Draft) 

While the Guardians didn’t lose any players in the Rule 5 Draft, they added another weapon to the bullpen with Pallette, who was in the minors with the Chicago White Sox. 

Pallette posted a 4.06 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A with the White Sox last year, and is a converted starter. 

The Guardians selecting him in the Rule 5 Draft means that the Guardians will need to keep him on their 26-man roster all year. If the Guardians choose to remove him from their roster, they’ll need to offer him back to the White Sox. 

He’s likely going to slow into an even lower-leverage role compared to Brogdon, but it’s clear the Guardians liked something enough that they decided to limit their bullpen flexibility by adding him to the roster. 

The Guardians struck gold with their last Rule 5 bullpen signing when they plucked Trevor Stephan from the Yankees after the 2020 season, and they’re hoping Pallette follows that path. 

RHP Colin Holderman (signed to one-year, $1.5 million deal)

The Guardians finalized their bullpen on Thursday by signing Holderman to a one-year, $1.5 million deal a day after the Winter Meetings ended. 

Much like Brogdon, the 30-year-old Holderman is coming off a rough season where he had 7.01 ERA in 25 1/3 innings with the Pirates while also navigating some injuries. 

Holderman’s had some MLB success, however, as he had a 3.52 ERA in 107 1/3 innings across 2023 and ‘24 with Pittsburgh, and leans heavily on his sinker and sweeper. 

Holderman’s the biggest name of the three pitchers the Guardians acquired, and he’ll likely fill the role vacated by Jakob Junis, who posted a 2.97 ERA in 66 2/3 innings with the Guardians after signing a $4.5 million contract with the Guardians in the spring. 

The Guardians have done well in recent years with the budget-bin signings of Ben Lively and Junis, but they took that to a new level this offseason with their acquisitions of Brogdon, Holderman and Pallette.