Cleveland Guardians potential free agent shortstop Amed Rosario has struggled so far this year. Do the Guardians keep him or trade him?

Cleveland Guardians shortstop, Amed Rosario, is in the final year of his contract.

If the Guardians do not extend his contract, the right-handed hitting Rosario, 27, can become a free agent at the end of this season.

The Guardians 2023 payroll is estimated at $93 million.

Rosario’s current contract value is $7.8 million.

In 2012, the New York Mets gave Rosario a $1.75 million signing bonus as an International free agent from the Dominican Republic.

Regarded as their potential shortstop of the future, following his debut with the Mets in 2017 at the age of 21, Rosario spent parts of four seasons with the New York club.

In a major transaction, on July 2, 2012, Rosario was traded to the Cleveland Indians along with fellow middle-infielder Andres Gimenez and pitcher Josh Wolf for All Star Cleveland shortstop Francisco Lindor.

Both Rosario and Gimenez had outstanding seasons for the Guardians in 2022, when Cleveland won their division with an influx of young players.

Rosario was dynamic for the Guardians both at the plate and in the field. He hit .283 with 26 doubles, nine triples, and 11 home runs in 670 plate appearances.

His defense was solid for Cleveland, as he earned a permanent role as the team’s shortstop, with Gimenez his partner at second base. Gimenez even won a Gold Glove.

Now the Guardians have to decide if they extend Rosario beyond this year, or try to trade him before he becomes a free agent.

Keeping Rosario:

Rosario is not having anywhere close to the year he had in 2022. In fact, at the start of play June 13, he is hitting just .236/.286/.330/.616 with one home run, 17 RBIs, and eight stolen bases in 252 plate appearances. Rosario has not been caught stealing.

To be fair, Rosario struggled in April 2022, and came on strong the rest of the season. We have reached June, and his hitting results are improving this season.

This old scout has seen Rosario chase sliders, sweepers, and curveballs that are far outside the strike zone. More plate discipline is still needed.

Defensively, according to baseballsavant at mlb.com. Rosario ranks No. 40 in Outs Above Average for shortstops. In short, that metric is defined as follows: “The cumulative effect of all individual plays a fielder has been credited or debited with.”

In that metric, Rosario’s score is -11. By comparison, the Cubs Dansby Swanson leads the category at +10.

To date, Rosario has made eight errors in 191 chances, or just four below his total for all of 2022.

The Guardians may wish to keep Rosario, believing that he is a warm weather hitter with power to all fields.

The team also has young shortstops in Gabriel Arias, Brayan Rocchio, and Tyler Freeman capable of playing the position. Andres Gimenez would be an outstanding defensive shortstop.

Rosario and team leader Jose Ramirez are very close. It is quite probable Ramirez would lobby the Guardians to keep Rosario. The ramifications of letting Rosario leave via free agency may be detrimental to the team’s relationship with Ramirez.

While friendships are not the basis of good player decisions, the Rosario-Ramirez connection is real, and must enter the thinking of the Guardians front office.

How much would it take to sign Rosario to an extension? The amount of his contract request could tip the scale.

Here are the contract amounts of several major league average quality shortstops:

Nick Ahmed- age 33- $10.3 million and a pending free agent

Paul DeJong-age 29-$9.1 million with a $12.5 million club option for 2024

J.P. Crawford-age 28-$11 million per year for the next two years, and $12 million in 2026.

Enrique Hernandez-$10 million with free agency at the end of the year

To this writer, Crawford is a very similar offensive player to Rosario.

Do the Guardians want to pay Amed Rosario Crawford money at $34 million for three years?

Trading Rosario:

There may not be that many teams looking to upgrade their shortstop role.

That makes trading Rosario more difficult, and the return can be reduced in a market with such slight need and little demand.

Trading both ace starter Shane Bieber and Rosario in the same deal could make great sense. And the return would be much stronger.

The shortstop position has seen several All Star players break the bank with long-term, expensive contracts.

Rosario is not Corey Seager, Francisco Lindor, Carlos Correa, Trea Turner, or Dansby Swanson.

At best, Rosario can be a good hitter with moderate power. At best, Rosario can be an average defender.

As the Guardians have seen, Rosario can be streaky. His good streaks can be very good. His bad streaks can be very bad.

Guardians manager Terry Francona has hit Rosario in the two-hole in the lineup, right behind Steven Kwan and ahead of Ramirez.

Francona seems comfortable with Rosario. It would be safe to safe Francona feels Rosario can be very dangerous at the plate. And he can.

There are still some major league teams needing help at shortstop.

Would a trade to the Los Angeles Dodgers be in order? Injuries have required the Dodgers to need an upgrade at shortstop, and additional starting pitching. Might a trade that includes Bieber and Rosario to the Dodgers make sense?

The Miami Marlins and Boston Red Sox are probably looking for an upgrade at shortstop. Especially if the Red Sox keep injured Trevor Story at second base.

The Oakland Athletics have some interesting players that may fit well in Cleveland. The team might be able to acquire outfielder Brent Rooker from Oakland. He is likely not in Oakland’s plans. Is there a deal to be made with Oakland?

Might Atlanta be interested in trading for Rosario?

St. Louis is always an intriguing team to target. Might they want to deal first baseman Luken Baker for Rosario? How about corner infielder Juan Yepez? Or perhaps interest in Bieber and Rosario together?

Conclusions:

The Cleveland Guardians face a decision regarding shortstop Amed Rosario, who can become a free agent following this season.

If they keep Rosario, his price tag will likely increase. Even if he is extended for only one year.

If they trade Rosario, the demand is limited, and his value has declined since last season.

For now, Rosario has to pick up his game, and the Guardians have to determine the ramifications of both keeping or trading their current starting shortstop.