The Cleveland Guardians have always had one clear approach to building their roster: They will find and develop young players. That’s the way they’ve handled things for decades, and it will probably be their course of action for many more years to come. As such, it’s not a surprise to hear that they keep making major additions to their scouting department.
As reported by Guardians analyst Justin Lada of “Locked on Guardians,” the Guardians have now hired John Manuel:
“Guardians have hired former Twins scout and long time Baseball America writer John Manuel as a scout,” Lada posted on X.
#Guardians have hired former Twins scout and long time Baseball America writer John Manuel as a scout.
— Justin L. (jlbaseball on bluesky) (@JL_Baseball) January 12, 2026
Manuel, a long-time editor for Baseball America, was among four people terminated by the Minnesota Twins last season. The Twins cited budget cuts as the main reason to get rid of most of their pro scouting staff. Still, given his long track record as a sharp baseball mind, it’s not shocking to see that he didn’t need much time to land right back on his feet.
The Guardians know that building a contender is their best shot at winning a World Series. They’re not going to go back and forth in bidding wars with the biggest markets or the highest spenders; they won’t even try at this point.
Of course, that also comes with plenty of risks. As good as it is to have a young team, both for sports and financial reasons, there are no guarantees that young players will become stars.
As things stand now, it seems that the Guardians are banking all their hopes on some youngsters. Guys like Chase DeLauter, George Valera, C.J. Kayfus, and maybe even Travis Bazzana and Angel Genao will be asked to do plenty of heavy lifting on offense. They certainly have the potential and talent to be superstars, but some players need more time to flourish and get it together once they make it to the pros.
As such, not signing any veteran sluggers in free agency could come back to haunt this team next season.
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