Cleveland Guardians Make Roster Decision With Trevor Stephan

Outrighting Stephen removes him from the 40-man roster, but he will stay in the organization and could be an option for the big-league team at some point. However, another 40-man roster move would be needed to add him to the MLB roster.

Cleveland signed Stephen to a four-year, $10 million extension heading into the 2023 season. After throwing in 71 games with a 4.06 ERA that season, the 29-year-old found out that he would need surgery.

By accepting the outright assignment by Cleveland, Stephen will still receive the rest of his $2.3 million salary for 2025, his $3.5 million compensation in 2026, and the $1.25 million buyout for the 2027 club option.

This news was a devastating blow for Stephen, who was once one of the setup men in baseball in 2022. That season, the Guardians went to the ALDS Stephen posted a 2.69 and 1.18 WHIP with a devastating slider.

Unfortunately, Stephen just hasn’t been able to return since undergoing Tommy John surgery. 

He’s pitched in a total of 13.2 innings across three levels this season (ACL, Double-A, and Triple-A), and his given up 14 runs (9.22 ERA) and owns a 1.90. 

Stephen’s biggest struggle during his 2025 minor league stint has been his command. He has struck out 15 batters, but he’s walked nine hitters, too. The righty’s velocity has also not been able to get back up to where it was before the surgery.

With both Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz out until the end of August due to an MLB investigation, Stephen could have been an interesting option to add to the Guardians' bullpen down the stretch. 

While that could, theoretically, still be the case, he still has a lot of work to do to get to that level. For the team’s and Stephan’s case, hopefully, he can get back on a big-league mound at some point in 2025 or 2026. 

That said, it will be interesting to see who eventually fills that now-open roster spot. John Means?

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