Guardians grab Giolito, 2 more Angels castoffs

The Cleveland Guardians claimed three players off waivers Thursday afternoon, including right-handed starter Lucas Giolito, benefitting from the Los Angeles Angels‘ intentional deconstruction after mortgaging their farm system just 37 days ago in an ill-fated attempt to make the postseason, sources told ESPN.

The Guardians also claimed right-handed reliever Reynaldo Lopez and left-handed reliever Matt Moore from the Angels’ purge, sources told ESPN.

The Angels on Tuesday also had waived outfielder Hunter Renfroe, outfielder Randal Grichuk and right-handed reliever Dominic Leone as the half-dozen players, all impending free agents, which allowed them to be picked up by teams for a $50,000 fee. The claiming team with the worst record was awarded the player. The Angels, after a disastrous August that saw them fall completely out of contention, shed the players to save money and dip beneath the first luxury-tax threshold of $233 million.

Prior to 2019, waivers in August were revocable, allowing teams to pull back — or trade — players claimed. With post-trade deadline deals no longer allowed, teams use the waiver period in hopes another organization will take on a player’s contract.

Never had a team availed itself of the system quite like the Angels. On July 26, the day they decided not to trade superstar free-agent-to-be Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles acquired Giolito and Lopez from the Chicago White Sox for top catching prospect Edgar Quero and left-hander Ky Bush. Four days later, they dealt for Grichuk and first baseman C.J. Cron and a day later landed Leone.

Then they collapsed, going an American League-worst 8-19 in August, with Ohtani injuring his pitching elbow and Mike Trout playing one game after a return from hand surgery went poorly. The deadline acquisitions hadn’t gone well, either, though the claiming teams are hopeful that a change of scenery — and potential playoff run — will elevate their performances.

While some executives called privately for rules changes to avoid the potential enrichment of worse-performing teams with high-caliber big leaguers after the deadline, the Guardians were plenty glad to get essentially for free what the Angels barely a month ago spent heavily to acquire.

The Guardians are 64-70, but just five games back of the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central. And now they will add Giolito for the final month to a rotation that has a historically excellent group of rookies in Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams and Logan Allen.

Giolito, 29, was one of the prizes of the deadline — and should fit in better with the Guardians than he did the Angels. In six starts with Los Angeles, he threw 32.2 innings, allowed 10 home runs and went 1-5 with a 6.89 ERA. In his previous 21 starts with the White Sox, Giolito 3.79 ERA was more in line with his career performance.

Lopez, 29, will join a Guardians bullpen that already includes closer Emmanuel Clase and Trevor Stephan.

Moore, 34, has been the most effective of the claimed players, posting a 2.66 ERA in 41 appearances. His transition from the rotation to full-time reliever started in 2021, led to a 1.95 ERA last year and could see him pitching in the postseason for the first time since 2016.