Cleveland Guardians Confident Several Free-Agent Signings Will Pay Off

The Cleveland Guardians, baseball’s small-market wonder run by a gaggle of button-down, abacus-aligned analysts, are at it again.

While MLB teams have already doled out nearly $2 billion this winter to the top veteran free agents, the Guardians firmly refused and did what they do best. They stuck to their time-tested process of shrewd scouting and innovative player development, believing it will keep them competitive contenders.

“We are confident our signings this winter make us better,” said Assistant General Manager James Harris. “It is one of our best groups.”

JUPITER, FL: Pitching prospect Ettore Giulianelli of the St. Louis Cardinals warms up prior to a minor league spring training game against the New York Mets at the George Kissell Quad on March 19, 2023. The Cleveland Guardians signed him to a minor-league deal this month.(Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)

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He was not referring to the relatively low-budget additions of veteran relievers Shawn Armstrong, Colin Holderman, Connor Brogdon and infielder Carter Kieboom. He meant signing teenagers on the international market – 12 from Venezuela, eight from the Dominican Republic and two from Cuba.

And one under-the-radar signing of 22-year-old Italian right-hander Ettore Giulianelli.

One look at the “viral screwball” thrown by the native of Rimini, Italy, shows why the Guardians were interested. So interested, they made sure they had several looks.

The pitch helped him strike out 104 over 68 2/3 innings in parts of four seasons after signing with the St. Louis Cardinals for $200,000 at age 16 in 2019. Being unable to throw it for strikes and issuing 76 walks was why the Cardinals released him.

“Richard Conway (director of international scouting) and Paul Gillespie (senior vice president, scouting) did a lot of work on this one,” Harris said. “Then again, they’ve done so much important work for us for years. They spearheaded this, going to see his workouts at Tread Athletics in North Carolina. We brought in more of our scouts to get other opinions and came to an agreement.”

The consensus was that Giulianelli was much improved and worth more than just watching. They signed him to a minor-league deal on January 6.

“He has completely changed his motion, actually added a few miles an hour to his fastball to the mid to upper 90s and threw strikes,” Harris said. “He went from throwing directly over the top to overhand but at a lower slot.”

The Guardians are known for cultivating pitchers. Giulianelli is their latest project as a potential reliever.

Why Switch From Switch Hitters?

Cleveland had $8,034,900 in international pool money to use this year, tied with six other teams for the highest allotment in MLB. Three switch-hitting shortstops got the biggest deals from Cleveland: reportedly $820,000 to Svert Reinoso, $625,000 apiece to Karel Naranjo and Rafeliz Lara.

The Guardians absolutely covet Latino switch-hitting middle infielders. They proudly collect them any way possible – and why not? Ten such prominent players up the middle were part of Cleveland playoff runs: Omar Vizquel, Carlos Baerga, Tony Fernandez, Roberto Alomar, Asdrubal Cabrera, Francisco Lindor, Jose Ramirez (now an all-star at third base), Cesar Hernandez, Brayan Rocchio and Angel Martinez.

The current farm system has these switch-hitting middle infielders highly ranked by MLB.com: Angel Genao (3), Juan Brito (14), Welbyn Francisca (15) and Dauri Fernandez (23).

Reinoso’s strong arm and stronger intensity gain immediate notice. The 17-year-old Dominican is well developed at six-foot, 195 pounds and shows power potential at bat. Scouts say he can play short, but if he gets bigger, may be moved to third base.

Naranjo, 16, is a 5-9, 155 pound Dominican, very agile, can throw and has good bat speed while maintaining patience at the plate. He’s reportedly a better hitter from the left side. His arm is suited for shortstop, his agility may move him to second. The bat likely will determine his future.

Lara will turn 17 on January 26. Born in Cuba, he grew up in the Dominican Republic. He’s 5-9, 182 pounds, with long arms reminiscent of fielding whiz Yordys Valdes, yet another switch-hitting infielder working his way up the minor-league system since being a second-round draft pick in 2019 by Cleveland.

One That Got Away?

Albert Fermin was the top-ranked switch-hitting infielder in the international pool. The slender 16-year-old got $2.3 million from the Houston Astros. He’s got a great arm, loads of speed and power potential.

“The Astros got a great player,” Harris said. “It’s hard to put into context when comparing how we evaluate one player above another except to say we are very happy with our group.

“It is very difficult to project how a teenager will grow, develop, not just physically. We followed 15 of our 20 signings for two to three years and believe we have a good feel.”

Signing bonuses are not the final answer. Ramirez got $50,000 from Cleveland in 2009. Long-time Astros star Jose Altuve got $15,000 in 2007.

Then again, superstars Miguel Cabrera ($1.9 million from Miami in 1999) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ($3.9 million from Toronto in 2015) paid off.

Often, big bonuses to international players do not work out well. Right-hander Yadier Alvarez got $16 million at age 20 from the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016. He retired in 2022 with a 12-14 record in the minors.

Penny Wise Pays Off

Over the past 10 seasons, Cleveland’s 843 wins are fourth among MLB’s 30 teams. That trails only the Dodgers (944), Astros (890) and New York Yankees (873).

Since 2016, the mighty Yankees and supposed weakling Guardians have the same amount of World Series Championships: zero. Each made it to one World Series, New York in 2024; Cleveland in 2016. The Yankees had a 32-33 record in eight post-season appearances; Cleveland was 21-24 in seven post-seasons.

What’s so different? According to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, Cleveland’s total 40-man competitive balance payroll over those 10 years was $1,218,837,708. The Yankees’ was more than double: $2,543,612,203.

Cleveland Guardians’ Future

Scouting + Analytics + Video Analysis + Player Development = the Cleveland Guardians’ past, present and future. The organization believes it is the best blend for a small-market franchise.

They have a strong international network. Even their top-rated prospect, second baseman Travis Bazzana, is from overseas. The Australian by way of Oregon State got a team-record $8.95 million to sign as the No. 1 overall choice in the 2024 MLB Draft.

When MLB teams pulled out of the Venezuelan Summer League after the 2016 season due to growing political unrest, the Guardians still scoured the baseball-rich country.

“The situation in Venezuela is tough to predict in so many ways,” Harris said. “We still have a presence there. We have several former players passing on information and a network of scouts. Our interest there has remained high.”

The Cleveland Guardians also scout Europe and Far East for players, believing you can’t get a World Series title without knowing … the world.