The Cleveland Guardians have signed 6-foot-3, 235-pound RHP Enyel De Los Santos to a minor league contract with an invite to MLB spring training for the 2022 season.
De Los Santos spent time in 2021 with both the Phillies and the Pirates. He appeared in 33 games between both clubs striking out 48 batters over 35.1 innings, but allowed 43 hits and 18 walks leading to a 6.37 ERA. On November 5th the Pirates removed De Los Santos from their 40-man roster, paving the way for him to become a free agent.
Currently De Los Santos is pitching in the Dominican Winter League for his club Tigres del Licey. He has yet to allow a run over five games while striking out 13 batters over his 8.0 innings pitched. Two of his current Tigres teammates include recent Guardians minor league free agent signing catcher Sandy Leon and RHP J.C. Mejia (who Cleveland traded to Milwaukee on November 22nd).
De Los Santos was originally signed as an international free agent back on July 17th, 2014 by the Seattle Mariners for just $15,000 dollars. He was traded to the Padres in 2015 and then to the Phillies in 2018. On July 10th, 2018 he made his MLB debut with the Phillies vs. the Mets. In 2021, De Los Santos was designated for assignment by Philadelphia and Pittsburgh claimed him off waivers. He finished the remainder 2021 season in the Pirates organization.
The scouting report on De Los Santos is he possesses a 97-98 mph fastball with excellent life. He has a couple of nice secondary pitches with a slider in the low-80's and a changeup that has looked strong at times but still could use more work. He has started in the past, but may be more suited for the bullpen with a nice two-pitch mix in his fastball slider combination.
More must-reads: