Cleveland Guardians let breakout reliever leave after successful 2025 season

While the Cleveland Guardians were focused on bolstering the team's bullpen heading into the 2026 campaign, other organizations around the league decided to take note and join the fun.

On Sunday, Jan. 18, the Texas Rangers signed veteran right-hander Jakob Junis to a one-year deal worth a measly $4 million. The Rangers have been trying to make small, subtle moves throughout the entire offseason, with Junis serving as another budget-friendly addition.

Last season, Junis was one of the Guardians' best relievers. He appeared in 57 outings and pitched in 66 2/3 innings for a 2.97 ERA.

He also finally broke out with his control, throwing 55 strikeouts while walking just 18 batters.

The value the Rangers could get out of him is impressive, especially considering he signed a deal for just roughly $4 million last season, too. The league at large, though, seems to have placed a question mark on Junis, needing to see him be consistent year after year.

A contract like that could've been easily been obtained by the Guardians, which begs the question: why didn't they try to retain him after breaking out in 2025?

Rangers, RHP Jakob Junis reportedly agree to 1-year deal, per multiple reports including MLB's @Feinsand. pic.twitter.com/u5NCdZXZip
— MLB (@MLB) January 18, 2026

A journey to be reliable

At 6-foot-3, 238 pounds, Junis has been trying to be more consistent on the mound since getting his first chance in the majors back in 2017 with the Kansas City Royals.

In five years with them, he pitched over 500 innings for a 4.82 ERA as a starting pitcher. The issue is, he'd go from being lights out with a perfect trip on the mound one game, to being pulled after a few innings due to allowing an influx of runs.

Due to such inconsistency, the team moved on from him after the 2021 season, and he got a new start with the San Francisco Giants the following year.

In his first year with the Giants, he kept his role as a starter intact, but with further mishaps and mistakes happening on the mound, he would be moved to a role as a reliever. Being transitioned into the bullpen at 30 years old could hinder most pitchers, but he tried to use the new opportunity to reset his image.

When joining the Guardians towards the tail end of 2024, he finally started to showcase late-game reliability, posting a 2.85 ERA across 40 innings of action. He looked sharp with a career-best WHIP of 0.780.

In 2025, he was one of the best relievers for the Guardians with a 2.97 ERA across 66 innings, which makes seeing him leave so frustrating. Instead of signing two relievers that need to develop a lot heading into 2026, they should've signed Shawn Armstrong and then kept Junis.

But instead, the Guardians' front office has kept up with its reputation and had another disappointing offseason.

Junis will get his first chance to compete with the Rangers in MLB Spring Training, which is set to start at the end of February.

The Guardians will certainly be monitoring his play to see if moving on from him was the right option, especially considering they signed three other relievers, who, like Junis, are considered to be question marks. The team will have to hope the prospects they'll be showing off this season live up to the hype.