Guardians reuniting with former fan-favorite pitcher

Carlos "Cookie" Carrasco is making his grand return to Cleveland.

Zack Meisel of The Athletic reported on Saturday that the Guardians are bringing back the right-hander on a minor-league contract with an invitation to major-league spring training.

Now almost 37 years old, Carrasco pitched for Cleveland from 2009-20. He led the AL in wins (18) during the 2017 season and posted three separate seasons of 200 strikeouts or more in Cleveland. 

Carrasco was also a fan favorite, aided in part by his inspirational battle against leukemia. He beat the disease several months after his diagnosis in 2019 and returned to the mound for Cleveland that year. Carrasco earned AL Comeback Player of the Year honors as well as the Roberto Clemente Award in 2019 for his efforts.

Since 2021, Carrasco has been pitching for the New York Mets (going 3-8 with a 6.80 ERA over 20 total starts last season). He is probably more of a good-vibes signing than anything at this point. But it may also help that Carrasco was contemporaries with the Guardians’ new manager.