Help me understand what the Cleveland Guardians are trying to do.
José Ramírez is not at risk of being traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, but the fact that people were even talking about it is telling. Perhaps it’s not entirely clear to those outside the organization whether the Guardians are actually interested in winning baseball games?
If the Guardians were in full rebuild mode, dealing Ramírez for prospects would make sense. In that scenario, trading Shane Bieber would be understandable, too. But neither Ramírez nor Bieber are being traded. So must Cleveland must be trying to win, right?