The Cleveland Guardians were one of the most surprising teams in the second half of the MLB season.
Just when it looked like they were out of contention, Stephen Vogt’s squad rallied together to storm right back and overcome the largest deficit to win a division in MLB history.
However, that doesn’t mean this team isn’t flawed.
If anything, that red-hot stretch to close out the year should only show the front office the type of team they could have if they were willing to make a couple of moves.
With that in mind, team analyst Paul Hoynes wrote about the players they should target.
Unsurprisingly, he chose Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber as the ideal candidate:
“If a fleet of Brink’s trucks just pulled into Progressive Field and parked outside of Paul Dolan’s office, I’d take [Kyle] Schwarber and spend the rest of the winter on the beach,” Hoynes answered when asked who was high on his free-agent dream list.
That one should be pretty self-explanatory at this point.
The Guardians are desperately craving a proven bat and a reliable slugger, and Schwarber is as deadly a hitter as one can find around the league.
They could have him play the field at first base or play designated hitter, with Kyle Manzardo as his primary backup.
He’s the type of player who could instantly turn this offense around and make life much easier for Jose Ramirez.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t necessarily mean that he’s going to be on the Guardians’ radar.
We’re talking about one of the best players in all of baseball, and he’ll have no shortage of potential suitors in free agency.
Still, we’ve seen crazy things happen multiple times in the past, so the fans might not want to lose hope so quickly.
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