Now that we are fading out of the playoff picture and bringing in retreads like Calhoun (2-11 so far) and lifetime mediocre roster filler Ramon Laureano, the classic sucker bet that suddenly these guys can make a difference that they have never made or haven't made in years, it is time to start thinking about the REAL impact potential guys that we are going to put on the 40 man this winter.
So, here goes:
40 man roster locks:
Pitchers
1. Allen
2. Bibee
3. Bieber
4. Cantillo
5. Clase
6. Curry
7. De Los Santos
8. Hentges
9. Herrin
10. Karinchak
11. McKenzie
12. Morgan
13. Morris
14. Quantrill
15. Sandlin
16. Stephan
17. Williams
Catchers
18. BO Naylor
19. Fry
Infielders
20. Brito
21. Freeman
22. Andres Gimenez
23. Angel Martinez
24. Josh Naylor
25. Noel
26. Jose Ramirez
27. Rocchio
28. Tena
29. Arias
Outfielders
30. Kwan
31. Brennan
32. Valera
33. Gonzalez
Current 40-man roster guys on the bubble
34. Battenfield
35.Gaddis
36. Straw
True Prospects not currently on 40-man who are Rule 5 eligible
37. Jonathon Rodriguez
38. Tanner Burns
39. Daniel Espino
40. Dayan Frias
Other Players not on 40 man roster who might be considered for a spot
41. Zach Plesac
42. Bryan Lavastida
42. Daniel Schneeman
44. Micah Pries
44. Alexfri Planez
So, as you can see, even dipping down to suspects like Schneeman, Pries and the currently injured Planez, you only have 44 guys for 40 spots. That's really a good position for this time of year for an organization like the Guardians who SHOULD always be prospect-heavy in terms of prospects coming up to their Rule 5 years. In my opinion we should have no trouble putting together a 40-man roster entering the off-season. In addition, the two prospects we got in the deadline deals, Manzardo and Watson, do not have to be rostered this winter (Manzardo after next year, Watson the year after that)
So, what do I do the rest of the season?
Add Plesac to the 40-man before the end of the year. I don't know if Plesac will even be a viable option for us but he is at least worth taking to spring training next year and, as he would be a 6-year free agent if we didn't roster him, we need to at least maintain that flexibility.
I don't know if it will be possible but, if so, DFA Gallagher and bring up Lavastida for September. I know Lavastida is a long shot after being taken off the roster earlier this year but I want to see what he can do in the last month. Worse comes to worse we trade him ahead of the November roster freeze. I would be very comfortable going into next spring training with Naylor, Fry and Lavastida as my rostered catchers along with 1-2 veteran FA catchers signed to minor league deals.
The FO SHOULD have brought up Schneeman instead of Tena as we need to see what Schneeman can do ahead of the Rule 5 but we didn't do that and, instead, brought in Calhoun and Laureano, in totally stupid, unnecessary moves. I hope these are VERY short-term moves even though Laureano has already cost us the savings we made when we traded Civale.
In the off-season?
Add Burns, Espino, Rodriguez and Frias to the 40-man ahead of the November deadline. I am not so convinced Burns is a true prospect but I want to at least given him another year in the minors, this time at Columbus, to see if we can find a role for him on the ML team. I don't know about Rodriguez as a true prospect but he is almost a lock to be selected in the Rule 5 if we don't protect him.
Clearly, guys on the bubble could be traded or even DFA'd if we sign quality FAs in the off-season so we have some flexibility there, too.
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