The Cleveland Guardians’ biggest objective this offseason must be to improve the offense.
One way ESPN’s Bradford Doolittle believes the Guardians could do that is by pursuing an extremely familiar face for the franchise. The analyst believes Cleveland could be an interesting fit for free-agent veteran Luis Arraez.
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“As far as non-elite free agents, I kind of like the idea of Luis Arraez for this group as a DH/utility type who adds batting average to the mix and takes the team’s existing ethos to another dimension,” wrote Dollitte.
The Guardians are well aware of the type of player Arraez is. He started his career in the American League Central back in 2019, and has a career .786 OPS against the Guardians.
That said, Doolittle is certainly correct: Arraez fits the makeup of the type of hitter the Cleveland has loved in the past.
Arraez would definitely be an interesting fit for the Guardians. To start, he and Steven Kwan have been compared to one another for many years for their ability to work a count, generate a ton of contact, and their difficulty in striking.
The idea of Kwan hitting first and Arraez hitting second should strike fear in the minds of opposing pitchers. Starters could realistically throw 15 or more pitches to start a game before facing Cleveland’s third hitter, Jose Ramirez.
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In terms of more power or pop, Arraez definitely won’t help the Guardians improve in that category, but he would certainly make Cleveland’s lineup more pesky, which is an interesting thought.
Defensibly, Arraez wouldn’t be a perfect fit, but the Guardians could make it work if they really wanted him. First, Arraez is not a great defender, and never has been throughout his career. He had a negative-9 outs above average in 2025, ranking in the fourth percentile across MLB.
That said, Cleveland could move him around the diamond a little bit. Over the last two seasons, he’s played first and second base, but also appeared in the outfield when he came up with the Minnesota Twins.
Obviously, the Guardians already have CJ Kayfus and Kyle Manzardo and first, but there could be an opportunity at second, at least until Travis Bazzana makes his debut.
It wouldn’t make sense for Arraez to be Cleveland’s top free agent target, but if he’s still available as the winter goes on, there is a world where the Guardians could make it work.
