Last week, the Cleveland Guardians determined that a longtime starter in the outfield wasn’t in their plans for the future.
Myles Straw, who won the 2022 Gold Glove and a Fielding Bible award for his defensive prowess in center field, was placed on waivers.
The Guardians knew that given his salary and long-term commitment, the odds of him getting claimed were long.
According to Guardians Prospective, the talented defender went unclaimed and has accepted to play in Triple-A as organizational depth.
“#Guardians OF Myles Straw has officially cleared waivers and accepted his outright assignment to Triple-A Columbus. The organization still owes Straw: 2024 – $4.9MM, 2025 – $6.4MM, 2026 – $7.4MM, 2027 – $8.0MM, or $1.75MM buyout,” Guardians Prospective tweeted.
#Guardians OF Myles Straw has officially cleared waivers and accepted his outright assignment to Triple-A Columbus.
The organization still owes Straw:
2024 – $4.9MM
2025 – $6.4MM
2026 – $7.4MM
2027 – $8.0MM or $1.75MM buyout— Guardians Prospective (@CleGuardPro) March 25, 2024
The Guardians front office makes few mistakes other than failing to spend relevant dollars on specific free agents (that’s more of an ownership problem).
Extending Straw might have been one of their few questionable decisions.
Now, they have some really expensive Triple-A depth in the outfield.
Straw can definitely field and should be ready should an opportunity to come back up arise, but his .625 career OPS makes him one of the worst hitters in MLB when he is up.
His elite defense and excellent baserunning aren’t enough to offset the poor hitting, so the Guardians will likely go with Tyler Freeman as their starting center fielder at least to open the season.
Straw, in the meantime, will have to hit just to keep starting in the minors, where the Guards have talented outfield prospects such as Angel Martinez, Petey Halpin, George Valera, and Chase DeLauter, just to name a few.
NEXT: Guardians Veteran Reacts To Making The Rotation