GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Just days out from the start of the 2025 season, the Cleveland Guardians continued to downsize their roster Monday, optioning outfielder Will Brennan and right-handed pitcher Andrew Walters to Triple-A Columbus.
The Guardians¡¯ trade for Nolan Jones over the weekend created a logjam in the outfield, pushing Brennan back into the Minors. Brennan, 27, batted .265 for the Guardians over the past two seasons, playing in 252 games.
¡°It¡¯s tough,¡± Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. ¡°Will took it like a pro, like he always does. Doesn¡¯t mean it was easy. So, obviously, we know what Will can do, and we know he¡¯s going to help us win games at some point this year, it¡¯s just not going to be on Opening Day. There [are] things that we can always be improving upon and he knows what those are, but Will Brennan is a Major League outfielder, and unfortunately, he¡¯s going to go to Triple-A.¡±
Walters, 24, made his big league debut last season, allowing an unearned run in 8 2/3 innings across nine appearances.
¡°With Andrew, he had a pretty decent camp,¡± Vogt said. ¡°It got a little halted there in the middle, but for Andrew, I think it¡¯s just the continued development for him. We know that he¡¯s a Major League pitcher and we know that he¡¯s going to help us win a ton of games. Again, a lot of that decision came down to length, and we felt like having the two length options in the bullpen are what we need early in the year. We know for Andrew, going down and continuing to work and develop in Triple-A, he¡¯s going to be ready to help us win games very quickly and we know that he¡¯s an option there for us.¡±
Cantillo, McKenzie to open season in bullpen
Vogt announced Sunday that Triston McKenzie will start the season in the bullpen and Monday, the skipper announced that left-hander Joey Cantillo will as well.
Cantillo, 25, made his Major League debut in 2024, posting a 4.89 ERA in nine appearances, eight of which were starts.
The Guardians like the idea of starting the season with a trio of capable long relievers in their bullpen.
¡°Especially at the start of the season, we wanted to make sure we had enough length in the bullpen to make sure we could absorb innings, especially as our starters were building up their workload,¡± Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said. ¡°Triston can provide some length; Joey can provide some length in the bullpen and Jakob Junis also has the ability to go multiple innings. So, we had to make some tough decisions. We felt that there were a number of pitchers that got left off the roster that we think are going to impact us this year, but this is the group we¡¯ll go with for Opening Day.¡±
Guardians undecided on final roster spot
The Guardians have yet to set their 26-man Opening Day roster. The final position player roster spot is still up in the air.
¡°We are working through that final spot, in the position player club,¡± Antonetti said. ¡°It will likely be an internal candidate. Potentially, with the number of IL placements we have, we might recall a player that¡¯s been optioned already. It¡¯s also a time of the year where we are exploring external acquisitions, whether that could be a waiver claim or a small trade.¡±
Pair of non-roster invitees head to Triple-A
The Guardians signed a pair of well-traveled veteran pitchers to Minor League deals at the start of February. Both Vince Velasquez and Kolby Allard received Spring Training invites, and while neither will crack the club¡¯s Opening Day roster, they both will remain with the organization. Velazquez, 32, and Allard, 27, will start the season at Triple-A Columbus.
Vogt is very happy to keep both of them around.
¡°I love it,¡± Vogt said. ¡°We expressed to them how much we enjoyed having them, that we know they can help us at some point throughout the year. Kolby had a great spring and Vince has thrown very well. So, we¡¯re excited about having both of them. We know that having veteran pitchers like that, they¡¯re going to have an opportunity to help us at some point this year, and we feel really good about our depth going into the season.¡±