Day Two of the MLB Winter Meetings is underway in Dallas, Texas, and the Cleveland Guardians made a trade involving one of their young star players. However, it wasn’t the player many people expected to be traded.
Guardians fans thought first-baseman Josh Naylor would be the first player traded this season since he has one year left on his contract, and Cleveland likes to trade players’ contracts before they hit free agency so they can get something in return. Still, this time, they trade a player away with many years remaining on their contract.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, “The Toronto Blue Jays are finalizing a trade to acquire three-time Gold Glove-winning second baseman Andrés Giménez from the Cleveland Guardians.”
Gimenez was the main piece of the Francisco Lindor trade three years ago and was named an All-Star in 2022, but his bat fell significantly in the last two seasons, making him a liability at the plate.
There is no question of how great of a fielder Gimenez is, but the Cleveland Guardians selected Oregon State second baseman Travis Bazzana with the first overall pick this past July, and he should be ready to be called up sometime next summer.
In March 2023, Gimenez signed a seven-year $106.5 million deal and has a club option for the 2030 season, so the Blue Jays will be paying a heavy price for a while. Cleveland also traded relief pitcher Nick Sandlin and got back infielder Spencer Horwitz, who can play first and second base.
Cleveland will need to figure out who their second baseman will be until Bazzana is ready. If they can’t find one, it could backfire and cost them a chance at the postseason.
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