CLEVELAND — The Guardians traded starter Cal Quantrill to the Rockies on Friday for minor league catcher Kody Huff.
Quantrill had an injury-plagued 2023 season for Cleveland, a year after he won 15 games and helped the Guardians win the American League Central. The team designated the 28-year-old pitcher for assignment earlier this week.
He went 4-7 with a 5.24 ERA in 19 games in 2023 while twice going on the injured list for lengthy stints with shoulder problems. Quantrill was acquired by Cleveland in 2020 at the trade deadline from San Diego.
Cleveland has an abundance of young pitchers, making Quantrill expendable. Also, the team wasn’t ready to pay him more than the $6 million for next season he would have gotten after salary arbitration.
Huff, 22, spent last season with Class A Fresno in the California League. He batted .262 with five home runs and 36 RBIs in 86 games. The Rockies selected him in the seventh round of the 2022 draft after he played three seasons at Stanford.