Despite finishing the 2024 regular season with a 3.81 ERA in 82.2 frames, the Cleveland Guardians determined, a few weeks ago, that Pedro Avila would be removed from the 40-man roster to make room for new signing Paul Sewald.
He refused a minor league assignment, giving him the freedom to choose his own destination instead of waiting for his chance in the Guardians’ Triple-A affiliate.
Late on Wednesday, it was reported that Avila found a new team.
It’s not an MLB organization.
Instead, he will try his luck in what is considered the second-best league in the world: Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in Japan.
“Former Cleveland #Guardians RHP Pedro Avila has signed with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows for the 2025 season,” Guardians Prospective posted on X.
Former Cleveland #Guardians RHP Pedro Avila has signed with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows for the 2025 season.
— Guardians Prospective (@CleGuardPro) February 13, 2025
It’s not a bad landing spot for Avila, who was preparing as a starting pitcher this winter and has shown the versatility to excel as a starter or as a reliever.
That ability to adapt his arm to multiple roles made him extremely valuable to Cleveland, which is why some people wonder why they didn’t keep him around for 2025.
He didn’t start in 2024 but did open six games in 2023.
Avila has the ability to throw multiple innings at a time (he participated in 54 games last year and covered 82.2 frames) and became a reliable contributor in the Guardians’ 2024 postseason run.
He helped with four scoreless and hitless innings in the playoffs, with a walk and three strikeouts.
The Yakult Swallows are one of the best teams in Japan and succeeding there would be a nice twist in Avila’s career.
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