Guardians Re-Sign Dom Nunez To Minor League Deal

"Nuñez, 31 later this month, has spent the past two seasons with the Guardians, mostly with their Triple-A affiliate. He briefly appeared in majors in 2025, going 2-for-7 with a pair of singles in two games, but has taken 561 plate appearances and caught nearly 900 innings with their Columbus club dating back to 2024. He became a free agent after the season when Cleveland passed him through outright waivers."

"Originally a sixth-round pick by the Rockies back in 2013, Nuñez has appeared in parts of four big league seasons but owns just a .182/.280/.371 slash (58 wRC+) in 354 trips to the plate. He hasn't hit much in five Triple-A seasons either (.206/.333/.383, 27.6% strikeout rate) but has shown a knack for drawing walks and has some pop in his bat when he does make contact."

"Nuñez, however, has a sound defensive reputation. He's posted solid framing and blocking marks in the minors and majors alike, and he's nabbed a strong 29% of would-be thieves on the bases in his minor league career. Cleveland clearly places immense value on catcher defense - hence the team's repeated re-signings of Austin Hedges - and Nuñez will give them a quality defender to plug into the depth chart in the upper minors."

Dom Nuñez, who turns 31 later this month, re-signed with the Guardians on a minor league contract and will attend major league spring camp as a non-roster invitee. He spent the past two seasons mainly with Cleveland's Triple-A Columbus club, logged 561 plate appearances and nearly 900 innings caught dating to 2024, and briefly appeared in two big-league games in 2025 (2-for-7). His MLB career slash line is .182/.280/.371 in 354 plate appearances, and his five Triple-A seasons show a .206/.333/.383 line with a 27.6% strikeout rate, tempered by an ability to draw walks and occasional power. Defensively he grades well in framing and blocking and has thrown out 29% of attempted base stealers in the minors, matching Cleveland's emphasis on strong defensive catchers. Austin Hedges will remain the MLB backup while top prospect Cooper Ingle, who hit .260/.389/.419 across Double-A and Triple-A in 510 plate appearances last year, appears likely to get more seasoning in Triple-A before a probable 2026 debut if healthy.

Read at MLB Trade Rumors