The Cleveland Guardians did not make any additions of substance before the lockout.
As the collective bargaining agreement was approaching the expiration date at 11:59 P.M. Wednesday, plenty of teams were making moves to bolster their roster. Teams like the Mets and Rangers were spending big looking to solidify their team in the short and long term. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Guardians did not much of anything. Signing Sandy Leon and Enyel De Los Santos to minor league contracts, two deals that hardly move the needle.
While expecting the Guardians to go out and spend like Steve Cohen was not a realistic scenario, doing something, anything would have been a much better look for a franchise with the reputation of being cheap. Yes, there is more nuance to the conversation and Cleveland is one of several teams that have to operate in the manner they do. While the have been relatively successful in the way they do business, the ultimate goal of ending their World Series drought, currently the longest in MLB, has not been achieved.
The real issue is that the Guardians could have build some goodwill with their fanbase by making an actual signing of substance. There are still pockets of the fanbase who are not happy with the team for a multitude of reasons and making an addition would have helped mend the relationship between the two parties. While it is unreasonable to expect a signing similar of Max Scherzer or Corey Seager, adding a player on a less expensive/shorter deal would have gone a long way. Instead the perception of the franchise and the impression of the front office remains the same.
The all too familiar cries of Dolans Cheap continue to echo while the team sat on their hands and did nothing to remedy the situation. With MLB now locking out the players and transactions are at a standstill, things will do not have a chance of improving while the reputation of the team continues to suffer.
