The Cleveland Guardians have several issues to address in the offseason. They need to add firepower to a lineup that found its way to the playoffs despite ranking near the bottom in most offensive metrics.
They’re not likely to spend big to solve that issue, so analyst Jeff Passan recently revealed the Guardians’ “perfect offseason move.”
“Trade for St. Louis super utilityman Brendan Donovan,” Passan wrote. “Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: Cleveland needs offense. And with the Guardians rarely dipping significantly into the free agent market, that makes a trade a tantalizing option. Cleveland’s minor league system has plenty of talent, and few know it as well as Rob Cerfolio, the St. Louis Cardinals assistant GM who was previously the Guardians’ farm director. It just so happens the Cardinals, who will spend the winter in trade mode, have a player who can handle second base until Travis Bazzana is ready and then shift to a corner outfielder or even spend some time at shortstop.”
There’s no doubt that Bazzana is the future of the organization, at least on paper. Unfortunately, injuries held him back last season, further delaying the team’s plans to call up its top-ranked prospect.
The Guardians have a surplus of options in the middle of the infield right now. Brayan Rocchio, Juan Brito, Angel Gimenez, Daniel Schneemann and Gabriel Arias can all play there. Yet none of them might have Donovan’s offensive upside.
Given Cerfolio’s in-depth knowledge of the Guardians’ farm system, it could make things easier to get a deal done. That being said, the Guardians rarely give up valuable assets, so it would be interesting to see how they handle this situation.
Bazzana, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, is expected to make his Guardians debut at some point next season. But there’s no need to rush anything, especially given the time he missed this season. All things considered, this possible trade makes sense for both teams.
NEXT: Details Emerge About Why Guardians Could Trade Steven Kwan
