The Guardians’ second half had to wait a little longer Friday, with their opener against the Pirates pushed back because of poor air quality. Cleveland will now play a doubleheader Saturday, with Gavin Williams and Joey Cantillo lined up to take the ball as the club tries to carry its momentum into the back half of the season.
That momentum matters. Cleveland finished the first half on a four-game win streak, only to see the Chicago White Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 12-4 on Friday and briefly grab sole possession of first place in the AL Central. With the division bunched up, trade-deadline chatter is already swirling around the Guardians, and one of the louder rumors involves a very familiar face.
During a recent appearance on The Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima, The Athletic’s Zack Meisel addressed the idea of New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor returning to Cleveland. The Mets have stumbled, and Lindor is having the worst season of his career, which has opened the door to speculation. Meisel, though, doesn’t see the fit.
“As much as I think you would love to come back to Cleveland, I don’t see any scenario where that makes sense at the moment,” said Meisel.
Meisel also said he doesn’t think Lindor will be traded at all. Even if the Mets were willing to move him, the contract is the real obstacle: five years and more than $162 million remain after this season. Lindor turns 33 in November and is batting .210 with a .654 OPS in 41 games this year.
The decline isn’t limited to the bat. Meisel pointed to Lindor’s defense slipping as well, and said he would be a clear downgrade from Brayan Rocchio right now. The only version of a reunion that would even begin to make sense for Cleveland, he said, would be one where the Mets absorbed most of the money and essentially turned it into a salary dump.
Lindor left behind plenty of memories in Cleveland, but the message here is simple: keep those in the past. The Guardians do need more offense, but they already have something working up the middle with Rocchio and Travis Bazzana. Meisel’s view is that this is not the blockbuster move to chase if Cleveland wants to keep pushing for another division title, especially not with young talent already in place.
In Other News...
Guardians Get One Huge Injury Boost As Another Setback Stings
The Guardians got a welcome dose of good news on the injury front with Jos Ramrez and Angel Martnez both moving in the right direction. Ramrez, coming back from hamate fracture surgery, is trending toward a return that could come without a minor league rehab stop, while Martnez has started his own rehab assignment as he works back from a left foot fracture. For a club trying to keep its lineup and depth chart intact, any progress involving a core bat and a useful role player matters.
Still, the day was not all encouraging. First baseman CJ Kayfus had to undergo ankle surgery after suffering a fibular fracture and ligament injury in a minor league game, a setback that hits both the player and the organizations depth planning. The Guardians are now left balancing the optimism around two recoveries with the more sobering reality of another long road back, and the next question is how quickly the roster can absorb both kinds of news at once. [Read more 🡒]
Four Former Guardians Could Suddenly Put Cleveland Back In Deadline Talk
A month out from the Aug. 3 trade deadline, four familiar names could wind up back in the rumor mill for reasons that matter to Cleveland. Josh Bell, Tyler Freeman, Sam Hentges and Lane Thomas all have different paths, different contract situations and different kinds of appeal, which is exactly why they have surfaced as possible pieces in other clubs deadline calculations. For a Guardians team that knows how quickly the market can shift, the intrigue is less about nostalgia than about whether any of these former players become useful leverage for someone else.
Bells one-year deal and Freemans years of control give them very different kinds of value, while Hentges has rebuilt enough stock after arm injuries to draw attention again. Thomas is the wild card, especially with Kansas City sliding hard and every roster decision getting harder to justify as the deadline nears. None of it guarantees movement, but it does leave Cleveland watching a corner of the market where old friends could suddenly become relevant again. [Read more 🡒]
Cade Smith Opens Up About His Proudest Guardians All-Star Moment
Cade Smiths first All-Star experience gave the Guardians right-hander a little bit of everything, from the rush of the weekend to the chance to pitch on one of baseballs biggest stages. He handled his inning well in the 2024 MLB All-Star Game, working a scoreless frame with two strikeouts, but what stood out most for him was the chance to be around the game in a different way than he usually is during the season.
Smith said the best part was getting to talk with players from other teams in a normal, non-competitive setting, a rare break from the usual grind. He also appreciated sharing the moment with teammates and taking pride in representing both Cleveland and the American League, a reminder that even in an event built around stars, the experience can mean as much off the field as it does on it. [Read more 🡒]