Cleveland Sports Forum

Clase is on leave until the end of August for possible gambling. Looks like Ortiz might have pointed the finger at him.

apparently they are friends in the locker room and out. And share some risky behaviors.

We don't need to speculate on trade value for Clase any more.

According to Hoynes:

Luis Ortiz was placed on leave on July 3. His investigation was supposed to end on July 17 but was extended to Aug. 31 to match Clase’s. “It’s believed MLB’s investigation into Ortiz uncovered information about Clase that led to him being removed from the active roster.

On the theory that the Guardians have to trade someone the rumor mongers are now suggesting:
Santana is too old and too much past his prime to be tradeable
So, Bieber could be moved like Cobb was to Cleveland last summer [netting the Giants an impressive 18 year old pitcher from Cleveland]
And since Sewald is on the IL. and Thomas is on the IL, there's no one anyone might conceivably want
ERGO: Cleveland must be offering Kwan.
They'd better not be. He's one of only a handful of long-term pieces for a remotely potential contender.

I think it is time to put Manzardo in as the starting First baseman. He needs to develop and has shown signs of being the guy we wanted at First. Santana's swing is slowing down and while I like him I think he is standing in the way of growth from within our farm system.

Agreed

I am confident they will trade Santana if they can get anything for him, but at this stage of his career the return would be very insignificant

Just my worthless opinion on the Bieber trade for Khal Stephen.

Realistically this is a free player for Cleveland. They are out of it. Bieber was not going to pick up his option. So realistically his salary was all they paid for him and that now gets us a very good prospect.



The price reflects that, too, as the Blue Jays have sent their No. 5 prospect, Khal Stephen, to the Guardians in the deal, one of their breakout pitchers in 2025.

TRADE DETAILS
Blue Jays get: RHP Shane Bieber
Guardians get: RHP Khal Stephen (No. 5 prospect, set to become CLE No. 7)

When Bieber’s been healthy, he has been one of the best starters in Major League Baseball and picked up that Cy Young Award in the shortened 2020 season with a 1.63 ERA over 77 1/3 innings. He’s done it over full seasons, too, including a spectacular ‘22 in which he gave the Guardians a 2.88 ERA over an even 200 innings.

This is what the Blue Jays are hoping to capture here, and it only gets more interesting when you consider Bieber’s player option for 2026 is worth $16 million. A strong finish could make free agency awfully attractive for Bieber, but if there’s a way for the Blue Jays to keep him around, either via that player option or with an extension -- similar to what happened after they dealt for José Berríos in 2021 -- then this deal really gets exciting.

In the moment, though, the immediate upside is obvious. If the Blue Jays were to deal for a starting pitcher, the only logical moves were ones that landed them an arm who has the potential to start legitimate postseason games. The Blue Jays have solid depth through their current starting five, but this Trade Deadline has been all about raising their ceiling and Bieber represents that in every way. Reports out of his rehab starts have been encouraging, too, and he should only need a couple more before returning to the big leagues.

Writeup on Stephen:

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 55 | Overall: 50

Stephen started out as a back-end reliever with Purdue as a freshman, then developed into the Boilermakers' No. 1 starter as a sophomore. After a nice showing in the Cape Cod League, Stephen transferred to Mississippi State, where he posted a 3.28 ERA with 107 strikeouts and 21 walks in 96 innings. He signed with the Blue Jays for a below-slot $1,116,750 as a second-rounder, then raced to Double-A midway through his pro debut this year before getting traded to the Guardians for Shane Bieber.

While Stephen's fastball operates at 92-94 mph and touches 96, it's most notable for natural carry that allows it to miss more than its share of bats. It plays well in tandem with a mid-80s changeup that features significant fade. His low-80s slider also misses bats, giving him a third solid offering, and he'll occasionally mix in a decent upper-70s curveball.

Stephen has a physical 6-foot-4 frame, has added strength since turning pro and works with an athletic delivery that provides plenty of strikes. He has good feel for all four of his pitches and commands his fastball well. He may lack a true plus offering, but he has a high floor as at least a No. 4 starter and early returns indicate he may be better than that.

I am still concerned that they are eagerly trying to trade Kwan which is stupid
However the Bieber trade looks pretty good: we traded Bieber for prospective Bieber-like starter. Excellent control; moving quickly in his first year in the minors; the kind of pitcher Cleveland can often improve enough to raise his profile from a 5th starer to a middle of the rotation guy,

The reviewers at the Athletic give Cleveland an A. One "expert" listed Stephen at Number 80 on his top 100. BA ranked him 5 on their midseason Toronto top 10. Keith Law preseason had him 9. MLB.com has quickly slipped him at No. 7 on Cleveland's list which makes him the highest ranked pitcher. He could easily be higher on the G's list with DeLauter and Chourio ahead of him having achieved little this year

Great Non-Trade by the Guardians!! Keeping Kwan was a pleasant surprise.

Bieber trade yielded a prospective new Bieber.
Sewald wasn't doing us much good and saving some $ is worthwhile.

For all the second-guessing I’ve done w Vogt this season, he refused to let the team quit when the Clase & Ortiz thing could’ve been the last straw for many other teams…

I'm with you. I thought his over optimism during the slide was unimpressive, but he's rallied them past the loss of 2 key pitchers back into playoff competition.

He's done a great job mastering his revised bullpen. And great credit there goes to Sabrowski and Enright for stepping in to key roles.
And big boost from offensive improvements from Manzardo, Schneeman, Arias, and some contributions from Rocchio, Martinez and even Naylor. It's been a more than 2 man offense since The Slump
And great to have Kayfus's bat instead of the gaping holes put up by Noel, Jones and JRod.

civ ollilavad wrote: Sat Aug 09, 2025 9:29 am
And great to have Kayfus's bat instead of the gaping holes put up by Noel, Jones and JRod.

100%

CJ at 1st base today. Santana gets the day off after a big day Friday. Nolan in RF batting 9th; he is "due"

two summers ago when he had his One Great Year, one analysis said
"expecting 10 to 15 steals from Jones to go with 25 to 30 homers is not unreasonable, and why he is a top dynasty keeper."

Another: Ranking the Top 100 MLB Players of the 2023 Season
63. Nolan Jones, OF, Colorado Rockies
.297/.389/.542, 20 HR, 60 R, 62 RBI, 20 SB, 135 wRC+

Between not getting called up until late May and playing for a 103-loss mess of a team, Jones was easily the most underappreciated player of the year. He almost hit .300. He did join the 20 HR/20 SB club in just 106 games played, and he racked up an MLB-best 19 outfield assists in just 793 innings. It's all very reminiscent of Jeff Francoeur's MLB debut in 2005. [BTW, Cal Raleigh was number 70]