What’s Next For Cleveland Guardians Unsung Star Amed Rosario?

For the last few years, the Cleveland Guardians have been acquiring middle infielders, to the point that 20% of their current 40-man roster are either second basemen or shortstops. Seven of their eight middle infielders are 24, or younger.

The old man of the group is shortstop Amed Rosario, 27, who was a key member of Cleveland’s surprising AL Central Division champions last season. Rosario led the league in singles, led the league in triples, was third in the league in hits, batted .283, and, with his relentless hustle and aggressiveness, was the heartbeat of the team.

But the biggest bargain of the group was second baseman Andres Gimenez, who arguably was the biggest bargain in the American League. The 24-year-old Gimenez, the starting second baseman on the American league all-star team, hit .297, with a .371 on-base percentage and .837 OPS.

Gimenez also belted 17 home runs, stole 20 bases, and got hit by pitches a league-leading 25 times. He finished sixth in the MVP voting, was the AL Gold Glove winner at second base, and his 7.4 WAR led all American League position players not named Aaron Judge.

What made Gimenez such a bargain was his salary: $706,600.

The presence of Gimenez and Rosario, both fixtures in the Guardians’ middle infield, plus six other middle infielders waiting in the wings on Cleveland’s major league roster, gives the Guardians’ front office plenty of flexibility for 2023 and beyond.

The future may even be closer than it seems, and it’s directly tied – as is frequently the case with Cleveland – to payroll. Few major league teams do more with less than the Guardians.

For example: when Francisco Lindor got too expensive for the Guardians, they traded him to the Mets – for Rosario and Gimenez, who in 2022 were two of Cleveland’s most important and valuable players in the team’s unexpected dash to the top of the AL Central, and beyond – coming within one win of a trip to the ALCS.

But budget-conscious Guardians think tankers are always plotting at least one chapter ahead of today’s headlines. In this case, their heavy inventory of middle infielders may lend itself to whatever the next potential fork in the road may be.

It could involve Rosario, who in January avoided arbitration by signing a one-year $7.8 million contract. That modest figure wouldn’t rattle the counting houses for most major league teams, but in Cleveland it makes Rosario, who was paid $4.06 million last year, the fourth-highest paid Guardian in 2023.

The only three Cleveland players with higher 2023 salaries than Rosario’s $7.8 million are newly-acquired free agent first baseman Josh Bell ($16.5 million), third baseman Jose Ramirez ($14 million), and pitcher Shane Bieber ($10.01 million).

This is not meant to be a prediction that Rosario’s salary could be the next one to be shipped to another team. At 27, he should be entering the peak years of his career. Indeed, a season statistically mirroring his 2022 campaign would be accepted by Guardians officials not just with open arms, but with, potentially, an open-for-business nod towards a multi-year deal.

Failing that, Rosario can become a free agent after the 2023 season, meaning say hello to shortstop Gabriel Arias (22), shortstop Juan Brito (21), shortstop/third baseman Tyler Freeman (23), second baseman Angel Martinez (21), shortstop Bryan Rocchio (22), and shortstop Jose Tena (21). Those are the other six middle infielders on Cleveland’s major league roster.

Not all of them are big-league ready yet, but there’s a reason why club officials protected them from the prying tentacles of middle-infield Rule 5 draft shoppers at the winter meetings.

The other option, of course, should Guardians officials eventually decide that Rosario’s modest salary was projecting into immodest (for them) territory, or should another team with a desperate need for a promising big-league shortstop candidate come calling, Cleveland could trade Rosario and promote one of the students from their middle-infield academy.

Plan B? Or, depending on the circumstances, Plan A?

Well, if everything broke their way, the Guardians in 2023 could flex their muscles even more and, at mid-season, after projecting themselves capable of a big-time, swing-for-the-fences playoff run, identify their version of Mr. Right, and offer a package of prospects to whatever team currently employs him.

The key word is “options.”

No front office worth its company credit card can afford not to be prepared should opportunity knock.

In today’s game, having a ready stable of young, promising, projectable middle infield prospects are a good way to get the attention of shoppers when you’re looking to land a big-ticket item yourself.

Ideally, of course, the Guardians and Amed Rosario produce a similar season of success such as last year, except with a happier ending. Perhaps one that includes an extension for Rosario.