A look at where the Guardians roster stands heading into spring training 2023

The Guardians took a controllable, youthful roster from a surprising 2022 team into the winter and quickly addressed their two most pressing needs.

With those two major points on their to-do list crossed off, the question is what, if any, moves will follow heading into the spring as the Guardians hope to make a deeper run in October 2023 with a roster that is largely now a year older and a year more experienced.

The Guardians had only two glaring question marks: designated hitter and catcher. They had to rely on Owen Miller (since dealt to the Milwaukee Brewers for a player to be named later or cash) and Will Brennan (whom the team is high on long term) in the playoffs prior to Josh Naylor hurting his ankle. And the team moved on from catchers Austin Hedges (Pittsburgh Pirates) and Luke Maile (Cincinnati Reds).

Josh Bell and Mike Zunino address Guardians' immediate roster needs

Josh Bell (two-year, $33 million deal that includes a player opt-out after 2023) will handle an everyday role between DH and first base along with Naylor, who could also see time in right field now that he's an additional year removed from major ankle surgery. President of baseball operations Chris Antonetti outlined an expectation of increased spending flexibility shortly after the postseason ended for the Guardians, and much of that ended up being directed toward Bell, adding a middle-of-the-order switch-hitter to the lineup.

Mike Zunino ($6 million for 2023) will take over the starting catcher role with Bo Naylor waiting in the wings to take over the job long term. Zunino figures to be a significant offensive upgrade over Hedges and Maile while being an above-average defensive catcher (although not elite like Hedges), provided he's fully recovered and able to produce after thoracic outlet syndrome surgery ended his 2022 season.

What happens with Amed Rosario, and how some one-year veterans now fit Guardians' plans

The Guardians could address the back end of their rotation through a trade, and just about every contender is always a candidate at some point (often the trade deadline in July) to bolster the bullpen. And, as has been the case for some time, Amed Rosario remains a top trade candidate considering he's in the last year of arbitration eligibility and can be a free agent at the end of the 2023 season.

But the Guardians' situation at shortstop — and how Rosario fits into the team's short- and long-term plans — is a bit more nuanced than it was a year ago, even though he has remained one of the few players not under long-term control.

The Guardians are flush with talented prospects who can play shortstop. In addition to Andres Gimenez cementing himself into their long-term future (he can stick at second base or move over to shortstop at any point), Tyler Freeman, Brayan Rocchio, Gabriel Arias, Juan Brito and Jose Tena are all on the 40-man roster. Brito and Tena are still a ways off from the majors (Tena being closer than Brito), but Rocchio is nearing big-league readiness and Freeman and Arias have already made their major league debuts.

If Cleveland does pull off a trade of any kind, it's possible one or several of those names are included, as it remains the organization's biggest surplus.

The Guardians known they can contend in 2023 (and beyond). So while they're flush with youth knocking on the door, it doesn't mean the team wants to thrust everything upon their shoulders as soon as they walk through it and join the majors. It means one-year veterans can make sense, as is the case with Rosario and the plethora of shortstop options behind him, even if it means not getting anything in return before they walk to free agency.

It's also the case at catcher, with Zunino lessening the need for Naylor to handle all of the catching responsibilities right off the bat.

Guardians' turn toward 2023 playoff contenders makes Amed Rosario situation more nuanced

Had the Guardians taken a step back in 2022, and several things at both the major- and minor-league levels went awry, it would make much more sense to deal Rosario for whatever Cleveland can get for him now. And without the goal of contending, it'd be easier to deal Rosario as a more valuable player to a contender and sign a stop-gap shortstop on the open market if they weren't ready to start service time clocks.

Except, of all the contenders who could use Rosario to help them win now, the Guardians are at the top of the list. Rosario has put together back-to-back 2.4 fWAR seasons, making him not only a valuable, but perhaps more importantly, a stable piece to the lineup, even to the point that Jose Ramirez has campaigned for the Guardians to sign him to a long-term extension.

And with players like Rocchio, Freeman and others either ready or not far from it, keeping Rosario in the fold (unless a team overwhelms Cleveland with value) makes sense to both try to contend for a World Series in 2023 while also lessening the burden on younger players to produce at the major league level right away, even if that exact occurrence was a major factor to winning 92 games and the American League Central last summer.

That youth and those internal options do give the Guardians flexibility to pull off a trade if the right opportunity presents itself, but is also lessens their need to do so without getting back top value. Nothing has to be forced, and although the team always wants to set itself up in a better position for the long road, the opportunity to win now might keep Rosario in place.

Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Amed Rosario trade possibilities nuanced as Guardians hope to contend