GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- With little time for the dust to settle from Saturday¡¯s trade that sent Tyler Freeman to the Rockies for Nolan Jones, the next question Sunday turned to right field.
The Guardians dealt the utility infielder who, just 24 hours earlier, appeared set to claim a spot on the Opening Day roster when the season opens March 27. The roster was so close to being set, in fact, that manager Stephen Vogt had told left-handed Will Brennan -- in position to platoon in right field with the right-handed Jhonkensy Noel -- that he had a spot on the Opening Day roster.
The trade reunites Jones with the Guardians, who originally drafted him in the 2nd round in 2016. The outfielder, also a left-handed swinger, was a Rookie of the Year candidate in 2023 when he became the first rookie in MLB history to post at least 20 home runs, 20 steals and 19 outfield assists in a season.
¡°Obviously, Jhonkensy Noel will continue to get reps in right field, and we have to sort through what the rest of the roster looks like here over the next couple days,¡± Vogt said.
One day earlier the skipper told Brennan an Opening Day roster spot was his.
"That¡¯s now up in the air,¡± Vogt added. ¡°There¡¯s no final decisions that have been made. We just have to work through some things over the next few days. This was unforeseen.¡±
¡°Unexpected¡± was the word from Cleveland general manager Mike Chernoff, who said the whole thing happened in about 48 hours.
¡°We felt like it was an opportunity to add a left-handed, impact-type bat or with the potential to have that type of impact into our outfield mix, which we felt like we really needed,¡± Chernoff said. ¡°So this was an opportunity we had to take advantage of.¡±
Steven Kwan and Lane Thomas will start in left and center field, respectively.
Brennan started in right field Sunday and went 1-for-3 in the Guardians¡¯ final spring action in Goodyear, which resulted in a 13-2 loss to the Reds. In his three years with Cleveland, the 27-year-old has played 194 games in right field.
In 16 spring games through Sunday, Brennan has played 13 games in right field, twice in left and once as DH, slashing .244/.292/.422.
Jones, on Sunday, was already meeting with medical staff at the team complex in Goodyear, just a ride across the Valley of the Sun from the Rockies¡¯ facility in Scottsdale.
He started his pro career with the Cleveland organization as an 18-year-old in rookie ball and went up the chain quickly as their No. 3 prospect. Jones made his big league debut with the Guardians in 2022, but that offseason was dealt to the Rockies for shortstop Juan Brito, who this past Friday was optioned to Triple-A Columbus.
¡°We obviously know Nolan really well from his time here,¡± Chernoff said. ¡°We had a great feel for the player, which probably allowed us to act a little bit more quickly than we typically would.¡±
Jones made his first career Opening Day roster in 2024 with the Rockies. His average outfield arm strength of 97.7 mph was the second-fastest in the Majors, and his 101.3 mph assist on July 1 was the fastest outfield assist in the Majors all year.
Jones, however, struggled with injuries. Back and knee issues led to a slash line of .227/.321/.320 in 79 games last season.
Chernoff says the Guardians put Jones through a medical review prior to the trade.
¡°We felt comfortable with where things are,¡± Chernoff said. ¡°We are going to have to manage his workload appropriately and make sure that we try to keep him on the field.¡±
With Freeman no longer among the Guardians¡¯ infield options, Gabriel Arias and Daniel Schneemann figure to handle second base. Freeman had played six different positions in 15 spring games with the Guardians, and in 206 career big league games has played seven different spots (including DH).
¡°It¡¯s not like we were out there looking to trade Tyler. We love Tyler and felt like he fit on the team,¡± Chernoff said. ¡°But when an opportunity like this arose we did feel like, okay, this is another chance for us to potentially trade from an area of organizational depth for an area of more immediate need.¡±
Chernoff was vague about any other potential trades possibly coming.
¡°In the last two or three days of Spring Training it kind of speeds up because you have external opportunities that are unexpected,¡± he said. ¡°I imagine there will be a flurry of conversations that happen. That always happens at the end of spring. But we feel really good about the roster that we have right now.¡±