Cleveland Guardians Sign Former Outfielder for Intriguing New Role

The Cleveland Guardians have brought back some familiar faces this offseason. That started with signing Carlos Santana following the Josh Naylor trade, and now Tyler Naquin is set to rejoin the Cleveland organization, too.

However, the one-time outfielder isn’t looking to retake a spot in the lineup. The Guardians have signed Naquin to a Minor League contract as a pitcher.

During Naquin’s four seasons in Cleveland from 2016-20, he hit .274/.323/.443 with an OPS of .766.

It’ll be weird seeing Naquin, a solid position player during the first part of his career, taking the mound as a pitcher. However, this isn’t completely unheard of.

Anthony Gose also had a solid career as an outfielder during the 2010s. Once it was clear he no longer had a role as a position player, he transitioned to becoming a pitcher.

Gose even found some success in this role, posting a 4.78 ERA and 1.381 WHIP in 2022 before undergoing Tommy John that winter.

Naquin has always had a solid arm as a defender, and his arm strength ranked in the high 90th percentile during his last three Major League seasons.

That said, he’s still never pitched in a professional game, and this is the definition of a project signing.

Again, this is a Minor League deal, so there’s really no risk associated with it. Maybe it works out for Naquin, and maybe it does.

Still, it’s going to take some time to get used to seeing the one-time outfielder throw from off a mound.

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