The Cleveland Guardians recently signed former outfielder Tyler Naquin to a minor league deal.
The 33-year-old was an unsung hero in that magical 2016 season for the Guardians, a year that almost ended with a World Series championship.
He played as an outfielder, though.
He had a very nice career at the position, with 61 home runs and a .761 OPS.
He will now try to make it as a pitcher, though.
A role transition this late in his career sounds crazy, but we have seen crazier things in this beautiful game that we call baseball.
Former Guardians hurler and current analyst Jensen Lewis offered his two cents about Naquin’s plans of making it on the mound.
“Can Tyler Naquin actually pitch? “You love the spirit of Naquin trying to evolve as a ballplayer. We’ll see what happens,” BIGPLAY Cleveland Show posted on X, with Lewis’ remarks.
Can Tyler Naquin actually pitch?
"You love the spirit of Naquin trying to evolve as a ballplayer. We'll see what happens."
presented by https://t.co/qwevEk776m pic.twitter.com/Hyw6v8HlIG
— BIGPLAY Cleveland Show (@BIGPLAYCLEshow) March 12, 2025
Lewis actually offered a much broader analysis of how different it is to ramp up and recover for pitchers, at least compared to position players.
“For him, it’s just going to be more of the shock of what it really takes to keep your arm in shape,” he said, before sharing how he knew some position players that, before batting practice, would get up on the mound and ramp it up there at about 85-90% for three or four throws.
These players, he said, were surprised about the feeling of soreness in their arms the next day.
Naquin recently said he is sitting in the 94-96 mph range, touching 97 on occasion.
He also revealed he is working on his four-seamer, a cutter, and a changeup.
He is willing to discover how it feels to be a pitcher, to deal with the wear and tear on his arm every day, and to experience the game from a new angle.
That alone deserves some kudos.
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