The Guardians have added depth to their pitcher roster by signing right-hand shooter Jakob Junis to a one-year, $4.5 million contract that will go into effect after passing a medical exam, ESPN reported. The club has yet to confirm the deal.

Younis is injured in the 2024 season, starting and running for the Brewers and Redskins as well as the Bullshed. He made a total of 24 appearances, six of which were as starting pitchers. If the Guardians plan to put Younis in a similar role in Cleveland, he would be another option for the team's starting rotation, which is still uncertain at this time. To be sure, he's able to provide a lot of innings support for the Guardians' bullpen (all but three of his 18 backup appearances in 2024 were multi-inning pitches). The Guardians' bullpen had a great season last season, but could be affected by some lag effects due to heavy workload and an in-depth playoff journey.

In the eight major league seasons he played for the Lords, Giants, Brewers and Redskins, the 32-year-old Younis accumulated an ERA of 4.48 over 780.1 innings and a 1.29 WHIP per inning. He showed excellent possession and had a career catch rate of 5.9 per cent (3.2 per cent in 2024, one of the best in the league). His best weapon is the slider, which his opponents batted at just 0.183 last season.

The 2024 season has been a challenging year for Younis, who was sidelined early in the season with a right shoulder impact injury and was hit by a ball while jogging in practice, resulting in a place on the Brewers' injury list. But he was strong when he was healthy, with a 2.69 ERA on 67 innings and 0.85 bases per inning. The Redskins traded for Younis from the Brewers in a mid-season trade, and he started five games for the Redskins late in the season.

The Cleveland Guardians had a full 40-man roster at the start of spring training, so they needed to make appropriate roster adjustments to make room for Younis.