From Indians to Guardians, a look back at Cleveland’s 2021 baseball year

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Baseball underwent a total transformation in Cleveland during the 2021 calendar year. From the roster to the ballpark to ownership and the team name, change is either on the horizon or already here.

It began in January with a potentially franchise-defining trade and things followed through an injury-riddled regular season, wrapping up with the debut of a new identity and the possibility of a new minority investor joining the fray in the coming year.

All the while Cleveland’s players delivered highlight performances, showed growth at the major league level and welcomed fans back to the park for the first time since playing in empty stadiums during the 2020 pandemic season.

On Friday’s Cleveland Baseball Talk Podcast, Paul Hoynes and Joe Noga talk about their favorite moments and players from the 2021 season prompted by responses to Guardians SubText.

Subscribe on:

Below is a look back at the past 12 months for the Indians/Guardians and all the major developments for the club in 2021.

Few were surprised when the Indians announced they had traded face-of-the-franchise shortstop Francisco Lindor to the New York Mets on Jan. 7. Lindor was approaching his final year of arbitration and his salary demands were about to price him out of Cleveland’s range. The part that caught many off guard was including longtime Cleveland starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco in the deal.

Cleveland’s big splash in free agency was to sign ex-Twins outfielder Eddie Rosario to a one-year, $8 million contract on Jan 30. The move was universally praised at the time, until Rosario under-performed in the middle of the Indians lineup, eventually landing on the injured list and getting traded to Atlanta in July. And that’s the last anybody heard from Eddie Rosario in 2021. (Narrator voice: That was, in fact, NOT the last we heard from Eddie Rosario in 2021).

In an announcement that foreshadowed Cleveland’s rotation woes during the season, ace starter Shane Bieber’s spring training arrival was delayed after the right-hander tested positive for COVID-19 prior to camp.

With Andres Gimenez playing well at shortstop during exhibition games, Cleveland made the move to put Amed Rosario (the other shortstop acquired in the Lindor trade) in center field. The Mets had tinkered with the idea of Rosario in the outfield prior to 2021, but Rosario’s debut turned disastrous as he committed three errors behind Bieber in a Cactus League game against the Angels on March 16.

Bieber was brilliant in the snow on Opening Day at Detroit, striking out 12 in six innings, but the Indians’ bats went cold and a rejuvenated Miguel Cabrera burned them with his glove in a 3-2 loss on April 1.

Cleveland Indians v Detroit Tigers — DETROIT, MICHIGAN - APRIL 01: Shane Bieber #57 of the Cleveland Indians throws a first inning pitch while playing the Detroit Tigers during Opening Day at Comerica Park on April 01, 2021 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)Getty Images

For the first time in more than a year, fans returned to the stands at Progressive Field for the home opener on April 5.

Veteran Bryan Shaw, who made Cleveland’s roster out of spring training, recaptured the spark that made him an integral part of the Indians bullpen from 2013-17. He set the franchise record for relief appearances and led the majors by pitching in 81 games.

One of the biggest question marks at the beginning of training camp was who would emerge as the closer between James Karinchak and Emmanuel Clase. Both hard-throwing right-handers had their moments early in the season, but it was Clase who emerged as the dominant force at the back end of the bullpen with 24 saves. Karinchak spent a month at Triple-A before returning for a final appearance in late September.

In a somewhat surprising move Cleveland named Jake Bauers its first baseman out of spring training, despite Bobby Bradley’s dominant exhibition season. Bauers was out of minor league options, and Bradley had one remaining, which likely played a major role in the decision. But Bradley stayed ready, and when Cleveland dealt Bauers to Seattle in June, Bradley finally got his chance at the big league level. He flexed his muscle in July with a walk-off home run against the Royals, one of 16 homers for the rookie in 2021.

With rumors swirling that the club had landed on a new name after disclosing in late 2020 that a change would be coming, the Indians officially announced they would be known as the Guardians in 2022. Legendary movie star Tom Hanks, a longtime Cleveland baseball fan, helped make the announcement with a stirring video released on the team’s social media channels.

Together, we are all... pic.twitter.com/R5FnT4kv1I
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) July 23, 2021

As MLB’s trade deadline approached, Indians manager Terry Francona made the decision along with Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff to step back from the club and focus on his health. Francona required foot and hip surgeries to improve his quality of life after limping through the first four months of the season in a walking boot. Bench coach DeMarlo Hale stepped in as acting manager for Francona over the final two months. It was the second straight season Francona did not finish the year in Cleveland’s dugout.

Despite missing several weeks with an abdominal strain, Indians slugger Franmil Reyes still treated fans to some mammoth home runs during the 2021 campaign, including a 446-foot blast July 28 against St. Louis that bounced off the catwalk above the home run porch in left field and nearly hit a bicyclist on Gateway Plaza outside the park.

In a year that saw MLB pitchers toss nine no-hitters (and at least two “notable achievement” seven-inning no-nos), Cleveland was victimized a record three times. No team had ever been no-hit more than twice in a season, but incredibly Indians righty Zach Plesac was the starting pitcher in all three of those games.

Plesac, who missed time with a thumb fracture, nearly authored a no-hitter of his own during a May appearance in Seattle.

With multiple starters on the injured list, right-hander Cal Quantrill transitioned from the bullpen to the rotation and dominated the American League after the All-Star break. Quantrill went 8-1 with a 2.27 ERA after July 1 and helped save Cleveland’s rotation and bullpen.

Another bright spot in a dark season of injuries for the rotation was Triston McKenzie, who bounced back and forth between Triple-A and the majors before settling in after July. During a seven-game stretch in August and September, McKenzie was 4-2 with a 1.76 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 46 innings. That stretch included an Aug. 15 outing that saw the rookie shut out Detroit over eight innings with 11 strikeouts, taking a perfect game into the eighth.

McKenzie led the Indians with 136 total strikeouts on the year, including eight straight against the White Sox during a Memorial Day outing at Progressive Field.

When the Indians lost 11 of 12 games at the start of July, it took them out of the race in the American League Central Division and prompted the front office to shift the focus for the remainder of the season toward evaluating players on the 40-man roster and developing young players already with the club. Owen Miller, Yu Chang, Gimenez and Ernie Clement each got a chance to prove themselves in the big leagues and earn consideration for a role on the 2022 club.

What was supposed to be billed as a showdown between Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani and Shane Bieber at MLB’s Little League Classic turned into a showcase for Amed Rosario and Quantrill, who each stole the show in South Williamsport. After a day of interacting with Little League players, Rosario launched a first-inning home run and finished with three hits while Quantrill stymied the Angels over seven scoreless innings.

Quantrill picked up the win on an emotional day at Progressive Field as the club played its final home game as the Indians. The 8-3 win against the Royals sent fans home happy, and the team saluted them on the field after the final out.

Cleveland Indians vs. Kansas City Royals, September 27, 2021 — Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Cal Quantrill throws in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals, September 27, 2021, at Progressive Field.John Kuntz, cleveland.com

Following the season, Jose Ramirez earned Man of the Year honors from the Cleveland chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Ramirez finished sixth in MVP balloting, marking the fifth time in the last six seasons he has received votes for the award.

In November, the Guardians announced that they would pick up its $13 million club option for Ramirez, but declined to exercise a $7 million option for catcher Roberto Perez, ending Perez’s eight year tenure behind the dish in Cleveland.

Also in November, Cleveland City Council approved a new lease agreement and partnership with the state of Ohio and the Indians that will provide $435 million in capital improvements at the park and guarantee that the Guardians remain in Cleveland for at least 15 years, with potential to have the team locked up until 2046.

But the ballpark wasn’t all that was due for a makeover. On Nov. 20, the Guardians announced a series of roster moves that added 11 players from the minors to the 40-man roster. Cleveland’s injection of youth signals a major change as the front office faces pressure to remain competitive while bringing along a boat load of young talent.

Cleveland Guardians signage goes up at Progressive Field, November 19, 2021 — A Brilliant Electric Signs worker cleans debris up after the new Guardians team shop signage at Progressive Field tore away from the facade and crashed to the ground. Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com

With the Black Friday shopping holiday drawing near, the Guardians announced new merchandise would go on sale Nov. 19 at the team shop inside the ballpark. It probably wasn’t the ideal time for crews to have an accident outside the team shop doors while installing a new Guardians sign. The sign crashed to the sidewalk when a masonry panel gave way. Nobody was hurt during the incident.

With the club’s name change complete, the ballpark lease extended and a whittled-down roster in place, Guardians owner Paul Dolan turned his focus to finding a minority investor. In late December, Dolan confirmed serious conversations with New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers owner David Blitzer as the target of his search. Blitzer, who also owns a handful of soccer clubs, could soon sign on as an investor with an eventual path to majority ownership in the club.