The Cleveland Guardians are faced with a big roster decision ahead of 2027. They need to inform trade acquisition Jo Adell whether or not they will tender him a contract by November 20.
After his overall body of work since landing in Cleveland from Los Angeles, the question seems confusing, baffling, even a bit insulting. After all, Adell brought in a much-needed injection of power against left-handers and posted a solid .244/.324/.417 line with seven home runs and 32 RBI in 48 games as a Guardian.
However, since he is entering his last season of salary arbitration, Adell is expected to get a significant bump in his salary, to the $9-$10 million range according to recent estimates. That may or may not be too much for Cleveland, depending on who you ask.
If you ask fans, they will tell you that he deserves that money and that it won’t break the bank. If you ask the owners of the team, they may think twice before committing those funds for someone whose career-high in fWAR is 1.4.
Guardians insider Paul Hoynes weighed in and suggested that all the time, effort, and prospect capital invested to bring in Adell via trade would be wasted if they non-tender him.
“Why get him in the first place?” Hoynes asked. “It seems like this is the guy you waited on for a long time — a right-handed power hitter that you can hit in the middle of the lineup.”
Adell is certainly flawed, but if he wasn’t, the Guardians probably wouldn’t be able to afford him. Despite a knack for highlight-reel plays, the numbers say he is a mediocre defender, and he doesn’t steal bases or get on base at a high clip. He does, however, have two things Cleveland needs: power and an ability to dominate left-handed pitchers.
Between the Angels and the Guardians, he hit 23 home runs this year and 37 last year in LA. When he makes contact in the air, it’s usually loud. Oh, and he had an incredible .320/.372/.599 line with a 168 wRC+ against southpaws this season.
Letting him go instead of paying him close to $10 million would not only be a mistake, but it would force the team to look for those traits in the open market or via trade again.
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