CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The Cleveland Guardians announced contract extensions with All-Star second baseman Andrés Giménez and reliever Trevor Stephan Thursday afternoon.
“We're really excited to announce multi-year contract extensions for two key contributors of our recent success over the past few seasons,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said.
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Giménez signed the second-largest contract in franchise history worth $106.5 million over seven years trailing the five-year, $125 million deal signed last year by All-Star third baseman José Ramírez.
With the club option exercised, it could be an eight-year, $128 million deal for Giménez that runs through 2030.
“We believe he's developed into the one of the best all-around infielders in Major League Baseball,” Antonetti said. “He’s a guy that is not only an elite defender at second base, a great bass runner, but we believe he's found his footing offensively and will continue to be a really productive offensive player for us. Beyond that, he's a great teammate, a leader in the clubhouse and player.”
Giménez is entering his fourth season, third with the Guardians after being acquired as part of the Francisco Lindor trade with the Mets in January 2021, and he is coming off a breakout year that saw him hit .297 with 17 home runs and 69 RBI.
Giménez started at second base for the American League in the All-Star game and won his first career Gold Glove last season.
Stephan was originally selected by the Red Sox in the 18th round of the 2016 draft and then New York Yankees in the third round of the 2017 draft after not signing with Boston before being picked up by the Guardians from the Yankees in the 2020 Rule 5 draft.
Stephan, 27, is entering his third big league season and he received a four-year contract through 2026 with club options for 2027 and 2028.
“Trevor's really an awesome story. If you think about rule five draft picks that have made impacts on teams, Trevor's right there at the top of the list,” Antonetti said. “He's emerged as one of the best late inning relievers in Major League Baseball and has been a huge force in the back of our bullpen for the last couple of seasons.”
In 109 relief appearances, Stephan is 9-6 with a 3.54 era while recording 157 strikeouts. In 2022 he struck out 82 in 66 appearances with a 2.69 era and three saves.
The Guardians now have two of the top-six 2022 AL MVP vote getters under contract through the end of the decade in Giménez and Ramírez who finished sixth and fourth respectively in league MVP voting last season.
“Hopefully it's the foundational pieces to allow us to be successful championship caliber teams because we believe they're both elite players and that's a great starting point for building good teams moving forward,” Antonetti said. “It also allows us to plan around them and understand what our commitments are, what our team could look like and where we may want to compliment the group.”