Guardians bring back former outfielder Tyler Naquin — as a pitcher

Former MLB outfielder Tyler Naquin is signing a minor league deal with the Guardians — as a pitcher. 

Naquin, who turns 34 next month, has played eight seasons in the majors, having last appeared in 2023 for the White Sox. 

Now, he’ll attempt to get back to the highest level on the mound. 

“[It’s] really exciting, the familiarity with the person, with the organization,” Guardians vide president of player development Stephen Osterer said, per MLB.com. “The stuff out of hand is really interesting, so there’s a lot of excitement to pair with a really good athlete. There’s the upside view of what that could look like down the road.”

Naquin, who was drafted in the first round in 2012 by Cleveland, has yet to pitch at either the collegiate or professional level. 

In 562 MLB games, Naquin hit .263/.316/.445 with 61 home runs while playing all three outfield spots. 

During his playing days, Naquin had one of the strongest outfield arms in the league, recording 32 outfield assists in his brief career.

He spent the first six seasons of his career with the Cleveland franchise, appearing in the 2016 World Series and finishing third in the American League Rookie of the Year voting that year. 

Naquin also played in parts of two seasons with the Reds and a brief 49-game stint with the Mets in 2022 as a trade deadline acquisition. 

He follows in the footsteps of position-players-turned-pitchers like Anthony Gose and Kenley Jansen. 

Jansen, who ranks fourth all-time with 447 saves, was drafted as a catcher before moving to the mound and eventually becoming one of the most closers ever. 

More recently, the former outfielder Gose switched to become a pitcher before the 2021 season. 

He has put up a 4.78 ERA in 31 big league games since then.

In December, Gose inked a minor league deal with the Mets.