Guardians Make Depth Move With Recent Minor League Signing

The Cleveland Guardians sign C Jake Anchia to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training.

Jun 30, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians ball bag sits in the dugout prior to the game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images / William Purnell-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians made a minor depth move on Thursday afternoon and signed C Jake Anchia to a minor league contract for the 2025 season. The deal also includes an invite to MLB spring training.

Anchia, 27, was previously involved with the Seattle Mariners organization. He was originally drafted in the seventh round of the 2018 draft but has yet to make his big-league debut.

Anchia spent the last two seasons with Seattle's Double-A affiliate and hasn't made much of an impression at the plate. He hit .210/.246/.358 with an OPS of .604 during the 2024 season.

However, there was some promise on the defensive end, with Anchia only committing 11 errors and allowing just four past balls all season. He was also formally ranked as Baseball America's best defensive catching prospect.

Mar 26, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Jake Anchia (56) reacts after scoring a run against the San Diego Padres during the ninth inning at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images / Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images

This is strictly a depth move for the Guardians as they look to fill out their catching depth chart. It is similar to Cleveland's signing of Dom Nunez earlier this offseason.

At the Major League level, Bo Naylor will be the Guardian's primary catcher heading into the 2025 season, and his backup will be Austin Hedges.

However, Hedges is on Cleveland's roster as more of a veteran/leadership role, and David Fry won't play the field in 2025. The Guardians may need to call up one of their minor league catchers in case either Bo or Hedges require lengthy stints on the injury list at any point during the season.

Will Anchia play at all for the Guardians during the 2025 season? Time will tell.

However, at the very least, he'll give Cleveland a little more confidence with the depth of this position group heading into the new year.