N&N: Emmanuel Clase, Andrés Giménez make All-MLB team

Dec 6, 2022 - 1:12 PM

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The Hot Stove has been left unattended and is now a scorching inferno. Several big-name dominoes began to fall in the free agent market yesterday, but none of them have fallen to the Guardians just yet. While we’ve seen plenty of signings happen over the first two days of the event (totaling over $1 billion already this offseason), we haven’t seen many trades yet — perhaps those are coming today as more value has been established by free-agent deals.

The Guards are still in the market for a catcher, some kind of first-base upgrade, and maybe a pitcher or two; the trade market may be where they look for one or more of those upgrades. Sean Murphy exists on the A’s, and Josh Bell would only cost money as a bat at first.

As we’ve done since Game 5 of the ALDS ended, we just have to wait and see.

Cleveland Guardians news

Clase, Giménez represent Guards on All-MLB Team | MLB
This is where news of Sean Murphy’s acquisition would go ... if I had any. Instead, let’s spend one more moment enjoying the fun that was the 2022 Guardians, as Emmanuel Clase and Andrés Giménez were named to the All-MLB team yesterday. Along with Clase and Giménez, José Ramírez, Steven Kwan, and Shane Bieber were finalists in their respective positions.

Guardians may consider a different approach in pursuit of Shane Murphy, Bryan Reynolds | Cleveland
Don’t get too excited about news here — Paul Hoynes is mostly just reacting to the extremely wishy-washy reporting of Ken Rosenthal, who said that “the market” for veteran catcher Christian Vazquez includes the Guardians. That might suggest that they’ll pair him with Bo Naylor instead of going after Murphy, it might also just mean that the Guardians need a catcher and Vazquez is a catcher, so the market exists. It’s an annoyingly vague statement by design.

Either way, yes, the possibility that the Guardians end up doing nothing (signing Vazquez counts as nothing) and run it back with Bo Naylor as the primary catcher.

Around the league

• The Yankees extended Brian Cashman for four years.
• The latest Winter Meetings rumors from ESPN.
• Aaron Judge to the Rays confirmed.
• Trea Turner signed a whopping $300 million deal with the Phillies.
• Justin Verlander signed with the Mets.
• The Twins may be shopping Luis Arraez while looking to re-sign Carlos Correa.