Foster Griffin and Nathaniel Lowe are both free agents now, but Cleveland hasn’t closed the book on either one.
After the Guardians’ run ended in the ALCS, the two veterans moved into free agency and became eligible to sign anywhere. That doesn’t mean a return to Cleveland is off the table, though, and team head decision-maker Chris Antonetti left the door open.
“Obviously both guys are free agents, so we'll, you know, continue to stay engaged with them over the next few weeks, as we develop, you know, what our off season might look like, and they begin to understand their alternatives,” Antonetti said.
That matters because neither player delivered especially loud regular-season numbers after Cleveland acquired them on Aug. 3.
Griffin’s stint was uneven after the trade, even though he had been one of baseball’s better starters in the first half. In nine regular-season starts with the Guardians, he finished with an ERA over 5.00 and a WHIP over 1.50.
Lowe’s Cleveland stretch started well before flattening out, and the source notes that he finished with a
The postseason, though, gave both players a chance to matter in a different way. Griffin was sharp in October, allowing just four earned runs across 10.1 innings while punching out 15 batters, good for a strikeout rate of 34 percent.
Lowe had his biggest moment in Game 1 of the ALCS, when he drove in the go-ahead run in an improbable situation; an at-bat off a healthy.
If Cleveland is choosing between the two, Griffin probably makes more sense to bring back right now. Lowe is useful, but the Guardians already have traffic at first base with David Fry and Kyle Manzardo still in the mix, and top prospect Ralphy Velazquez could enter the picture early in 2027.
Pitching is the area that makes Griffin especially interesting. Cleveland has enough arms to get through a 162-game season, but the postseason exp
Stephen Vogt said Griffin effectively became the Guardians’ third starter in October, though in an opener-bulk role rather than the classic starter mold.
So while nothing is settled, the fit is there. If Cleveland and Griffin can find common ground, a reunion would make sense, and for now the organization appears open to exploring it.
In Other News...
Guardians Just Lost Another Behind The Scenes Voice Rivals Keep Poaching
The Guardians are losing another one of the behind-the-scenes people who helped shape their offensive program, as Conner Watson is headed to Houston to become the Astros director of hitting. Watson spent the past two seasons as Clevelands assistant director of hitting development, and his move is the latest reminder that the organizations player development work keeps getting noticed well beyond Progressive Field.
Chris Antonetti has already acknowledged the staff turnover, and in some ways that comes with the territory for a club whose development pipeline is routinely viewed as a strength. Still, it is the kind of loss that matters, because these roles influence how hitters are identified, coached and pushed forward before they ever become everyday names in Cleveland. The Guardians have built a reputation other teams want to borrow from, but keeping the people who built it together is proving to be a challenge. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians May Regret Letting These Prospects Slip Away
Clevelands farm system has already produced enough intriguing names to keep tabs on, and a few former Guardians prospects are beginning to look like more than background pieces in other organizations. Juan Brito, Jacob Cozart and Josh Hartle all moved on in separate trades, and each has taken a step that suggests the move may end up benefiting their new clubs as much as it cost Cleveland. Brito landed with the Reds and flashed promise in a limited look, while Cozarts strong Double-A showing for the Angels has put him on a path toward a possible big league debut.
Hartle may be the most interesting of the three because of the role he could eventually fill for Washington. He has been effective at Double-A and looks the part of a pitcher the Nationals can build around in the near future, which only adds to the sense that Cleveland may have parted with more upside than it realized. None of these deals is decided today, but by 2027 the Guardians could be looking at three former prospects becoming useful major leaguers somewhere else. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians May Have Built Something Special With These Two Young Arms
The Guardians have spent years trying to assemble a homegrown pitching core that can carry them beyond one good season, and Gavin Williams and Parker Messick are making that plan look a lot more realistic. Williams emerged as one of the most overpowering arms in the American League, leading the league in strikeouts and carrying that stuff into the postseason, while Messick put together a strong regular season that put him squarely in the Rookie of the Year conversation.
What makes the pairing so intriguing for Cleveland is that both pitchers came through the organizations development pipeline, giving the front office a chance to imagine a rotation anchored from within rather than pieced together from the outside. Williams already looks like the sort of frontline starter who can headline October games, and Messicks rapid rise only deepens the sense that the Guardians may have more than one future ace on their hands. [Read more 🡒]