Former MLB outfielder Tyler Nakin has signed a minor league contract with the Guardian as a pitcher.
Nakin, who turns 34 next month, played eight seasons in the majors and made his final appearance in 2023 for the White Sox.
Now he is about to return to the highest level on the mound.
“[It’s] The Guardians said Stephen Oster, president of player development, the Guardians said. All MLB.com. “It's really interesting to be out of hand, so there's a lot of excitement about pairing up with a really good athlete. There's an inverse view of what that looks like.”
Nakin, drafted in the first round by Cleveland in 2012, has yet to pitch at the college or professional level.
In the 562 MLB game, Naquin hit .263/.316/.445 with 61 home runs while playing all three outfield spots.
During his playing days, Nakin had one of the league's most powerful outfield arms, recording 32 outfield assists in his short career.
He spent the first six seasons of his career with the Cleveland franchise, appearing in the 2016 World Series and finished third in the American League Rookie of the Year that year.
Nakin also played as a trade deadline with the Reds for part of their two seasons and a short 49-game stint with the Mets in 2022.
He follows in the footsteps of pitchers who have switched to positional players like Anthony Gose and Kenley Jansen.
Ranked fourth with 447 saves, Janssen moved to the mound and was drafted as a catcher before eventually becoming one of the closest people ever.
More recently, former outfielder Gose became a pitcher before the 2021 season.
He has since put in 4.78 ERAs in 31 big league matches.
In December, Gose signed a minor league contract with Mets.
