The Guardians and Rockies have reached a deal that despatched outfielder Nolan Jones to Cleveland in alternate for infielder/outfielder Tyler Freeman, in line with a report from Thomas Harding of MLB.com. The deal has subsequently been introduced.
The deal represents a homecoming for Jones, a second-round choose by Cleveland in 2016. He made his MLB debut with the membership in 2022 earlier than being traded to Colorado in a deal that introduced again Juan Brito in November 2022. Jones went on to complete fourth in NL Rookie of the 12 months voting that 12 months as he posted 3.8 fWAR/4.3 bWAR for the Rockies, slugging 20 homers and swiping 20 bases whereas splitting time between the outfield corners and first base. Jones slashed .297/.389/.542 that season, which, even within the inflated offensive atmosphere Coors Area supplies, was good for a superb 137 wRC+. In the meantime, Brito has but to make his huge league debut for the Guardians however posted a robust .256/.365/.443 line in 144 video games at Triple-A for the membership final 12 months.
Nonetheless, as spectacular as Jones’s first 12 months in Colorado, he suffered a major sophomore hunch in his second 12 months with the membership. Again points restricted him to simply 79 video games, and when he was wholesome sufficient to take the sphere, he was ineffective, with a lackluster rating of .227/.321/.320 slash line. Whereas a downturn in manufacturing ought to have all the time been anticipated relative to his 2023 marketing campaign, given Jones’s unbelievable .400 BABIP that 12 months, Jones’s misplaced energy manufacturing was a shock. After barreling up a whopping 15.7% of his batted balls in 2023, that quantity cratered to simply 5.9% final 12 months regardless of his general fee of hard-hit batted balls growing from 40.9% to 44.4%. That got here primarily from an enormous spike in groundball fee, as Jones hit 52.7% of his batted balls on the bottom final 12 months, ten factors greater than the 12 months prior. That left him to membership simply three homers final 12 months and enter his age-27 marketing campaign with loads of questions on what his manufacturing would appear like this 12 months.
These questions will now be answered again in Cleveland, the place Jones now seems prone to have the chance to lock down the membership’s common proper area job, which appeared prone to be stuffed by Will Brennan. Jones affords extra confirmed upside than Brennan, 27, who posted roughly league-average offensive numbers in a platoon position with the Guardians final 12 months. Brennan, in contrast to Jones, has choices remaining and may be despatched to Triple-A as depth for the approaching season. Ought to he change Brennan on the roster, Jones might share time in proper area with right-handed slugger Jhonkensy Noel if the Guardians need to spell him in opposition to left-handed pitchers, although Johnathan Rodriguez is an alternative choice on the 40-man roster.
As for the Rockies, they’ll be parting with Jones to usher in Freeman, a flexible utility bat with the power to play high quality protection everywhere in the diamond however with minimal offensive potential. A profession 83 wRC+ hitter who slashed .209/.305/.321 (84 wRC+) in 118 video games with the Guardians final 12 months, Freeman spent nearly all of his time in middle area but additionally received transient seems to be at shortstop, third base, and second base all through the season. With Brenton Doyle locked in because the on a regular basis middle fielder in Colorado, it appears possible that Freeman can be tasked with a extra common return to the grime in 2025. Whereas a utility position off the bench might be in Freeman’s future, given the presence of Ezequiel Tovar at shortstop and Ryan McMahon at third base, an harm to Thairo Estrada earlier this week opened up common taking part in time on the keystone for no less than the beginning of the season. On condition that, it appears possible that Freeman will both function the Rockies’ common second baseman or cut up time with veteran utility man Kyle Farmer on the place whereas Estrada recovers from the broken wrist that figures to sideline him for 4 to eight weeks.
Freeman was projected to be a part of the Guardians’ bench combine come Opening Day, possible as a backup middle area possibility behind Lane Thomas and a possible platoon companion for Brennan or Kyle Manzardo. It’s attainable a extra common outfielder like Rodriguez or Angel Martinez might be requested to tackle that position, however one doubtlessly intriguing candidate to affix the membership’s roster could be Brito himself. Brito is generally an infielder, with the overwhelming majority of his time within the minors spent at second base, however he received a glance in proper area final 12 months. He might be an intriguing addition to the membership’s bench combine so long as they imagine in Lane Thomas as a legit on a regular basis possibility in middle area.
