The Cleveland Guardians have been relatively quiet during the MLB offseason in 2023, only making a few moves that will move the needle for the team in 2023. The Guardians won 92 games last season, and were looking for a catcher and an upgrade at first base not only to take the next step in their postseason aspirations, but also to allow Josh Naylor to become the full-time designated hitter for the club when the season commences later this year.
The team lost two catchers in Austin Hedges and Luke Maile, as well as right handed pitcher Bryan Shaw, but were able to snag a buy-low catcher that could have potential for them on a team-friendly deal in Mike Zunino. They also went out and snagged first baseman Josh Bell, paying a decent price for the ex-Washington National and San Diego Padre, which is undoubtedly the team's riskiest offseason move thus far. Let's break it down:
Guardians sign C Mike Zunino
Although signing Willson Contreras or trading for Sean Murphy would have been the preferred route for the Guardians, they instead went for an intriguing buy-low candidate in Mike Zunino. They paid the 31-year-old just $6 million on a one-year deal, and he should unquestionably be the team's Opening Day catcher.
They will be hoping for the 2021 version of Zunino, who earned himself MVP votes, rather than the 2022 version, who struggled mightily and could not stay healthy for the Tampa Bay Rays. Only time will tell how the signing plays out, but it's a low-risk, low-reward play for Cleveland, and Zunino is a former third overall pick in the 2012 MLB Draft.
A much more riskier signing for the Guardians is Josh Bell, a player the team paid on a two-year deal after he really struggled at the end of the year for the Padres in 2022. Bell is the riskiest offseason move the Cleveland Guardians have made so far this offseason.
Guardians riskiest offseason move: signing Josh Bell
There has been roughly $3.6 billion spent this offseason and an MLB-record 2.94 years of length per contract, with multiple teams spending outrageous sums to acquire players on long-term deals, including Xander Bogaerts to the Padres ($280 million), Carlos Correa to the Minnesota Twins ($315 million) and Trea Turner to the Philadelphia Phillies ($300 million).
The problem wasn't as much in signing Bell to a two-year, $33 million deal as much as it was giving him an opt-out clause after the first season. It opens the door for the former All-Star to bail in 2024 if things don't go well with the organization.
There were two versions of Bell in 2022: the Washington Nationals version, where he hit .301/.384/.493 with 14 home runs and 57 RBI in 103 games, or the San Diego Padre version — .192/.316/.271 with just three home runs and 14 RBI in 53 games.
Obviously, the Guardians will be hoping for the kind of production Bell is capable of and showed in Washington, but it is a risky signing nonetheless. If he plays close to what he did with the Nationals, he'll likely opt out of his contract following the 2023 season. If he doesn't, and performs like he did while donning a Padres uniform, he'll probably opt into the last year of his contract and count a steep $16.5 million towards the Guardians' payroll in 2024.
Josh Bell has a good bat and a good enough glove to hold down the first-base position for Cleveland in 2023, and although they didn't break the bank to get him, he certainly wasn't cheap. There is no such thing as a bad one-year deal, but a two-year deal with an opt-out clause could end up being problematic for the Cleveland Guardians in 2024.
It's very possible that their aggressiveness towards Bell stemmed from missing out on Jose Abreu, one of their top targets in free agency, and desire to leave the offseason with one of the better bats on the market on a shorter term deal. However, an infield led by Bell, José Ramírez and Andrés Giménez is a promising prospect for Guardians fans heading into next year.
It'll be intriguing to see how Bell performs in 2023 on a very good Cleveland team, and even more interesting to see whether he intends to opt-out of his contract after next season. Josh Bell is the riskiest offseason move the Cleveland Guardians have made thus far.
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