CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Guardians have placed veteran first baseman Carlos Santana on outright waivers, multiple sources told The Athletic, perhaps signaling an approaching conclusion to the 39-year-old’s third stint with the organization.
Santana, who debuted with the franchise in 2010, has posted a .225/.316/.333 slash line in his 16th major-league season. He has lost playing time in recent weeks to Kyle Manzardo and C.J. Kayfus, a pair of young, well-regarded first basemen. Manzardo has cemented himself as the club’s cleanup hitter, while Kayfus, widely considered a Top 100 prospect this year, has been earning regular at-bats this month, either at first, right field or designated hitter.
Teams have 48 hours to submit a claim on a player who was placed on outright waivers, with priority determined by record, starting with the worst. Any team that wins a claim would be responsible for the remaining salary owed to Santana, which would be a little more than $2 million. If no one claims Santana, the Guardians could simply keep him on the roster or cut ties with him to create an opening for another hitter in Triple A.
The Guardians signed Santana to a one-year, $12 million deal in December after they traded Josh Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks for pitcher Slade Cecconi and a competitive balance draft pick. Santana’s bat has lost much of its thump, however, as he has produced only 21 extra-base hits in 455 plate appearances. Of the 154 players with enough trips to the plate to qualify for the batting title, Santana ranks 150th in slugging percentage.
He still walks at a healthy clip and plays exemplary defense at first base — he won his first Gold Glove Award at the position last year — but his lack of muscle in the batter’s box ultimately convinced Cleveland’s decision-makers to go in another direction.
Two years ago, at a similar spot on the baseball calendar, the Guardians claimed a trio of pitchers off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels — Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo López and Matt Moore — in a last-ditch effort to make a run at the AL Central title. It didn’t work.
Cleveland originally traded Casey Blake to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Santana and pitcher Jon Meloan in 2008. Santana left in free agency after the 2017 season, but returned a year later in a trade. Santana ranks second in franchise history in walks and fifth in home runs.
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