This is the worst Guardians offseason in recent memory

It appears that anyone expecting the Cleveland Guardians to improve their roster from last season will be forced to wait indefinitely. Instead of taking the most logical path forward, the Guardians have decided to make a series of moves that will, at best, maintain their level of competitiveness but more likely have reduced the amount of major league talent on their roster.

Gone are the likes of Andres Gimenez and Josh Naylor, being dealt in separate deals that have returned underwhelming major league pitchers and a few prospects who will not make an impact for several years down the road. While it is understandable that the front office would like to bring in new arms to avoid a near-complete breakdown of their starting rotation in 2025, the returns for both Gimenez and Naylor were very light for their respective talent levels, making the team worse off from a talent perspective from when the offseason began.

Now, it must be mentioned that Cleveland's front office was not completely inactive this offseason in the free agent department. Re-signing veterans Austin Hedges and Shane Bieber while bringing back long-time fan favorite Carlos Santana to take Naylor's place at first. It seems like the deals for Bieber and Santana are what pushed Gimenez and Naylor out, as the financial commitment to these two eclipses was what Cleveland would have paid their now-former first and second basemen.

With Naylor out of the picture, there was a clear need for someone to take his spot defensively, and the Guardians could have done a lot worse than the 2024 Gold Glove-winning Santana, Even with the fluctuation in performance and his lengthy injury history, counting on Naylor to be a meaningful contributor in 2025 seems like a better bet than the soon-to-be 39 Santana. If this was about improving the defensive performance on the right side of their infield, Cleveland could have also kept the three-time Gold Glove-winning and 2023 Platinum Glove-winning Gimenez.

When it comes to Bieber, there is still a ton of risk here. Coming off of Tommy John surgery, in addition to having multiple years of decreased velocity and strikeout frequency, there are concerns as to whether or not Bieber will be able to perform at a level that makes his $14 million salary for 2025 justifiable. There is a very real scenario that Bieber's 12 innings of work were an outlier, considering that it also ended his season. Perhaps a last gasp of high performance before his arm could take no more.

For a front office that usually prefers to act in a risk-averse manner, it seems like they are certainly taking a fair amount of risks this winter and not the kind that will raise their ceiling. Best case scenario, they match what they were able to accomplish in 2024, but the more likely one is that they take a step or two back in 2025. Do not be bamboozled by the familiar names and faces they brought in to appease the casual portion of the fanbase. Trading away two cornerstone players of the franchise for a light return could very well be a detriment to the chances of the Guardians being competitive next season.