3 Things To Improve All 30 Teams — The Cleveland Guardians
The 2021 Cleveland Guardians finished the season with a record of 80–82, good enough for a 2nd place finish in the extremely weak AL Central. Even with the inflated record, the Guardians did have two brights spot in their season in breakout closer Emmanuel Clase, and AL MVP candidate Jose Ramirez. Otherwise, it was a pretty uneventful season. In this piece, we will come up with 3 ways the Guardians can turn things around and have a more productive 2022.
1. Improve The Offense
Outside of Jose Ramirez, no other batter qualified for the batting title and only 3 other guys finished the season with an OPS+ of 100 or better (Cesar Hernandez, 100; Myles Straw, 104; Franmil Reyes, 127). These are very troubling numbers when a majority of your games come against AL Central pitching.
The Guardians have a lot of ground to make up offensively, and they have just the tools in house to do it. Three of the Guardians top four prospects are major league ready and can be upgrades at positions of need. Fourth ranked prospect Gabriel Arias is their top ranked SS prospect. With a minor league slash of .274/.327/.412 with 36 homeruns over 1,583 at bats, he could pick up where Amed Rosario left off and develop into a solid 6 hole hitter.
Their third ranked prospect, Nolan Jones, would make a great right fielder for them. With a career minor league slash of .273/.398/.445 with 51 homeruns and 310 walks over 1,525 at bats, he has shown that he has a great eye and has the potential for 25–30 homeruns a year. Numbers like those would easily place him higher on the depth chart than Josh Naylor who finished 2021 with a slash of .253/.301/.399.
Finally, the Guardians top prospect, Tyler Freeman, who projects to be a top tier second baseman. With a minor league slash line of .319/.378/.445 and only 108 strike outs over 1,055 at bats, Freeman would be another Nick Madrigal type with a majority of balls put in play. The Guardians don’t currently have a second baseman locking down that spot, so it could be Freeman’s to lose out of camp. With these three guys on the radar for 2022, they could combine to give the Guardians another 2 wins.
2. Don’t Rush Bieber
Turning 27 on May 31st, Shane Bieber is entering his 5th season of Major League Baseball. The 2020 Cy Young award winner and 2 time All Star sports a career line of a 3.29 ERA, a 3.05 FIP, a 137 ERA+, and 633 strikeouts over 503 innings and 80 starts. Unfortunately for Shane Bieber, he suffered a right shoulder sub scapularis strain (is there a doctor in the house?) that limited him to only 16 starts in 2021. 2 of his 16 starts did come in September in short 3 inning outings in which he only gave up 1 run over those 6 total innings.
Even with the 2 outings in September and Spring Training ramp up, the Guardians should look to slowly build Shane’s pitch count back up. For Opening Day his pitch count should be capped at 75 pitches. After 2–3 starts with no issues, up it to 80 for 2 starts. Still no issues, 85. Gradually increasing until he comfortably gets back to the 100+ pitch mark and the reigns are taken off.
The best part about this for the Guardians is that they have 4 other guys in their rotation that are coming off of solid seasons. Cal Quantrill being the 2 would take a lot of pressure off of him, even with him coming off of a season in which he posted a 2.89 ERA over 149.2 innings. Aaron Civale at 3 with his 3.84 ERA over 124.1 innings is a very servicable 3. And 4 and 5 being former top prospects Zach Plesac and Triston McKenzie who should improve year over year rounds out a solid rotation. With this rotation and a full season of healthy Shane Bieber, expect another 3 wins.
3. If The Season Goes Sideways, FINALLY Pull The Trigger On the Jose Ramirez Trade
Jose Ramirez made his Major League debut on September 1, 2013. Since the Guardians’ World Series run in 2016 and subsequent fall from grace, the trade rumors surrounding Jose have been numerous. Yet, he still resides in Cleveland. Should the season go sideways, that should no longer be the case.
In his age 28 season, Jose Ramirez did what Jose Ramirez does best: draw walks and hit dingers. Putting up a slash line of .266/.355/.538 with 36 homeruns, 72 walks, and a 141 OPS+, Ramirez was voted to his 3rd career All Star game and finished 6th in AL MVP voting. We are now entering his age 29 season and he definitely isn’t getting any younger.
Assuming the Guardians call up the above mentioned prospects, and have a full season of healthy Shane Bieber, an extra 7 wins would give them a record of 87–75. Going off of 2021’s final standings and adding the new 6th playoff spot, the Guardians would still be on the outside looking in come October finishing the season ranked 8th in the American League.
If it is abundantly clear that they will not be making the playoffs by July 15th, the rumors should become more than just rumors. The longer the Guardians wait, the lesser the return will be. Ramirez also has one more club option on his current contract for 2023 worth $13 million and it would make absolutely no sense for them to let him walk in free agency or wait another year when he’s a bigger hit to the CBT (Collective Bargaining Tax) thus lowering the return even further.
An 87–75 record is nothing to scoff at, even if it doesn’t make the playoffs. The AL Central is a little tougher this year with the Tigers being a year further into their rebuild and the White Sox still being the top dog of the division, but a second place finish in the division should still be attainable for the Guardians.
This has been our 8th entry in this series in which we try to pin point 3 things specific to each team that will give them a better year over year record. Previous entries include the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Atlanta Braves, the Baltimore Orioles, the Boston Red Sox, the Chicago White Sox, the Chicago Cubs, and the Cincinnati Reds. Next up will be the Colorado Rockies!
