Cleveland Baseball Insider

Guardians Add Four New Names To Their 40-Man Roster Ahead Of Deadline

Martinez, Cantillo, Herrin and Brito all added to Guardians 40-man roster on Tuesday

Todd Paquette

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The Cleveland Guardians added four new names to their 40-man roster on Tuesday as the deadline came to protect players from the upcoming MLB Rule 5 Draft on December the 7th on the last day of winter meetings.

To make room for the four new additions the Guardians traded outfielder Nolan Jones to the Rockies, RHP Carlos Vargas to the Diamondbacks and designated both LHP's Anthony Gose and Kirk McCarty for assignment. You can read more about each trade clicking on the links in this paragraph.

Angel Martinez - INF

The 20-year-old switch hitting infield prospect Angel Martinez is the son of former big league catcher Sandy Martinez. He signed with Cleveland as an International Free Agent July 2nd, 2018, out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Angel had an outstanding 2022 campaign over two levels starting the season at High-A Lake County and finishing year with Double-A Akron.

Martinez hit .278 with 40 extra base hits including 13 home runs over just 101 games between both clubs while posting an outstanding .849 OPS and 135 wRC+ on the year.

Martinez has an advanced approach for his young age. He has very good bat speed to go along with a sound stroke from each side of the plate. He has a good eye and recognizes pitches well. Martinez has room to add more muscle and size to his frame which along with his bat speed could lead to 15-20 plus home runs in a season.

He has average to slightly above average speed. He has a high baseball IQ that that helps to play up his speed on the bases and in the field. Martinez has the chance to stick at shortstop thanks to his strong arm and quick hands but can handle third and second base as well.

Joey Cantillo - LHP

The 22-year-old LHP prospect Joey Cantillo came over to Cleveland in the Mike Clevinger trade with the Padres back on August 31st, 2020.

Cantillo had a bit of a lost season in 2021 after he suffered an abdominal injury in spring training. He ended up not pitching in game action until the end of August, only throwing 13.0 innings out of the bullpen between the Arizona Complex League and Akron.

Cantillo came into the 2022 season healthy and back in his usual role as a starter appearing in 14 games for Double-A Akron. Unfortunately had his season come to an end early with a left shoulder soreness

It's what he did in those 14 Double-A games that have him as a lock for me. Cantillo posted a miniscule 1.93 ERA over 60.2 innings pitched including a five-game stretch during May when he didn't allow a run over 22.0 straight innings. Over the 60.2 innings he struck out 87 batters while allowing just 38 hits with opponents hitting for a paltry .178 average against him.

Cantillo offers a three-pitch mix in his fastball, curveball and changeup. His fastball ticked up a couple mph this year and now sits around 90-93 mph topping out at 96. His best pitch is a sinking changeup that is well above-average and plays well off his fastball. His curveball has a lot of downward action is graded out as average.

Although he is not overpowering, he utilizes a deceptive delivery, his advanced pitchability and solid command to get hitters out. The one concern with Cantillo is his ability to stay healthy with him missing significant time over the last two seasons. 

Tim Herrin - LHP

The 26-year-old Herrin was drafted by Cleveland in the 29th Round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Indiana University.

Herrin spent the 2022 season splitting time between Double-A Akron and Triple-A Columbus where he struck out 101 batters over 69.1 innings out of the bullpen while sporting 4.02 ERA.

The 6'6" left-hander is quite the presence on the mound similar looking to current Guardians reliever Sam Hentges. Like Hentges Herrin can really bring it with a fastball that runs 95-97 and can touch 99 mph. Herrin also has a cutter and a wipeout slider in his arsenal. 

While he still struggles with control at times his control has improved since originally drafted. If he can continue to develop better command and control of his above average three pitch mix he could be a definite weapon for the Guardians bullpen as soon as 2023.

Juan Brito - INF

The Guardians acquired the 21-year-old switch hitting 2B/SS prospect Juan Brito Tuesday in a trade that sent 24-year-old outfield prospect Nolan Jones to the Rockies. Brito was then immediately added to the teams 40-man roster replacing Jones.

Brito who was Rule 5 eligible for the first time was signed out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in back 2018 as an international free agent.

Brito spent all of the 2022 season with the Low-A Fresno Grizzlies where he played in 107 games. Brito triple slashed .286/.407/.470 with 29 doubles, six triples, and 11 home runs while also driving in 72 runs and stealing 17 bases. Cleveland had to love the fact that he struck out only 71 times in contrast to his 78 walks in 497 plate appearances fitting into the team's current philosophy of developing high contact bats that put the ball in play.

Brito is considered a bat first prospect. He has the innate ability to swing hard and create high exit velocities (Max EV 110 in 2022) off his bat but is still able to maintain a high contact rate (82% in 2022) from both sides of the plate. Along with his high contact rate Brito also has a very good plate discipline and has the ability to draw walks. He has very quick hands that allow him to barrel up and turn on fastballs on the inside part of the plate and not get beat. Brito has some power potential and could end up being a 15-20 bat as he continues to develop and mature.

He is considered a bit of a below average runner that lacks range on defense and might only be an option at second base if he stays in the infield as he continues to move up. He does have an average to slightly above average arm and is athletic enough that enables him to turn and make tough throws to first base.

Brito could start the 2023 season in his new organization for High-A Lake County or they could push his more advanced bat up to Double-A Akron.

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Read More:

Guardians' Terry Francona Wins American League Manager Of The Year

Steven Kwan Loses Out On AL Rookie Of The Year

Will Austin Hedges Return To The Guardians?

Guardians' Jose Ramirez Wins Silver Slugger Award

Emmanuel Clase's Contract Extension Proving To be A Success For Guardians

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Todd Paquette
TODD PAQUETTE

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