A recognizable face may someday join the Guardians in an unanticipated role. Cleveland revealed on Thursday that former outfielder Tyler Naquin has signed a minor league contract as a right-handed pitcher.
Naquin, 33, will report to the team’s training facility in Goodyear, Arizona, to begin working out with pitchers as he seeks to convert positions after eight years as a major league outfielder.
Naquin has not played in a major league game since 2023, when he played five with the White Sox. He debuted with Cleveland in 2016 and played 116 games as a rookie, largely in center field, as the Indians advanced to the World Series.
Naquin, Cleveland’s first-round draft pick in 2012 from Texas A&M, placed third in the American League Rookie of the Year voting after batting.296 with 14 home runs and 14 RBI.
His most memorable moment in a Cleveland uniform came on August 19, 2016, when he hit a crazy inside-the-park home run to defeat the Blue Jays at Progressive Field.
However, Naquin never lived up to the promise of his rookie season, fighting injuries the following year and suffering a season-ending knee injury after he collided with a wall while making a grab in Tampa Bay in 2019.
Cleveland released Naquin after the 2020 season, and he spent the next three seasons with the Reds, Mets, and White Sox.
Naquin will now aim to follow in the footsteps of former Guardians relief pitcher Anthony Gose, who spent five seasons as an outfielder for Toronto and Detroit before transitioning to relief pitcher in the Cleveland organization.
Gose spent five seasons in the lower leagues honing his delivery before making his major league debut in September 2021 with Cleveland.
He pitched with Cleveland for parts of three seasons, returning in 2024 after missing the 2023 season due to reconstructive elbow surgery.
From 2020 to 2022, Naquin averaged 92.8 mph on outfield throws and ranked fifth in the majors with 11 outfield assists in 2019.
