Guardians Urged to Pursue Former All-Star Infielder

The Cleveland Guardians have been linked to a former All-Star in MLB free agency.
Oct 17, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets second base Jose Iglesias (11) hits a single in the second inning during game four of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images
Oct 17, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets second base Jose Iglesias (11) hits a single in the second inning during game four of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images / John Jones-Imagn Images
In this story:

The Cleveland Guardians have some pretty obvious holes they need to patch this offseason. They must address their starting pitching, and they could use another outfielder.

But could the Guardians also try to add another middle infielder?

Caleb Moody of Just Baseball makes the suggestion, proposing that Cleveland sign former All-Star infielder Jose Iglesias in free agency.

"A name that comes to mind is the versatile veteran infielder Jose Iglesias," Moody wrote. "In 291 plate appearances in 2024, the 34-year-old hit .337 with an .830 OPS and a 137 wRC+ and made appearances at second, third and short with the New York Mets."

To be more specific, Iglesias slashed .337/.381/.448 with four home runs and 26 RBI in 2024.

Moody wants the Guardians to pursue Iglesias due to the fact that neither Andres Gimenez nor Brayan Rocchio provided much offense this past year.

That's definitely a fair point, and while Iglesias' 2024 campaign is definitely a bit of an outlier (he owns a career .710 OPS), he is at least a considerably better contact hitter than both Gimenez and Rocchio, boasting a lifetime batting average of .283.

Iglesias can play all over the infield, as he spent time at second base, third base and shortstop with the Mets this past year.

The 34-year-old broke into the big leagues with the Boston Red Sox in 2011 and made an All-Star appearance with the Detroit Tigers in 2015.

Iglesias would certainly represent an interesting pickup for a Cleveland squad that could afford to bring in some infield depth.


Published