Cleveland Guardians first baseman Carlos Santana opened up the scoring on Saturday with a 415-foot solo home run off of Angels starter Jack Kochanowicz in the first inning, but Cleveland would go on to lose 10-4 to the Halos. Santana would finish 2-for-3 with a walk, two RBI, and two runs scored. The former All-Star now has three multi-hit games in his last five games and now owns a .290/.343/.452 slash line with a .332 wOBA and 115 wRC+. The 38-year-old has shown he can still hit, making good contact (84.1 percent Contact%) and not striking out at a high rate (14.3 percent K%), and is coming off a season in which he played 150 games with 23 home runs in two consecutive seasons now, so fantasy managers who are deploying the veteran should have confidence in continuing to use his services until he shows signs of a slowdown. It may not be the prettiest of all waiver wire pickups, but managers looking for some bench help could consider the switch-hitter who is owned in just nine percent of Yahoo leagues.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Carlos Santana is expected to have an everyday role at first base to open the 2025 campaign. Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com reports that given Josh Naylor's departure, David Fry's (elbow) injury, and the development of Kyle Manzardo, Santana will likely have an everyday role at first base to open the season. Earlier in the offseason, it was reported that Fry could return to the batter's box early in the season but would only be able to operate as a designated hitter. The Guardians brought back their long-time first baseman in the offseason on a one-year $12 million contract. Santana spent the first eight years of his career in Cleveland and then returned for a brief two-year stint during 2019 and 2020 and will now return for his third stint. Last season, the 38-year-old held a .238/.328/.420 line with 23 home runs with the Minnesota Twins. He was very effective against left-handed pitchers as he posted a strong .286/.356/.578 line against them. As their top prospect, Kyle Manzardo, begins to develop, he may eventually earn a platoon role at first base alongside Santana. However, for now, fantasy managers in deeper formats should expect Santana to see most of the opportunities at first base.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Seattle Mariners offered free-agent first baseman Carlos Santana a higher salary and a player option for 2026, but the veteran first baseman decided to sign with the Cleveland Guardians instead. The Mariners have been in the first base market all offseason and have been linked to other top options such as Christian Walker. However, with Walker signing in Houston, the Mariners were willing to place a higher bid on Santana but were unable to agree to a deal. Instead, Santana choose to return to his old club on a one-year contract. Santana will now be the everyday first baseman in Cleveland with Josh Naylor being traded to Arizona. Last season, the 38-year-old held a .238/.328/.420 slash line with 23 home runs. Outside of Pete Alonso, other options at first base for Seattle are Justin Turner, Josh Bell, and Anthony Rizzo.
Carlos Santana Inks One-Year Contract With Cleveland
According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, the Cleveland Guardians have signed first baseman Carlos Santana to a one-year contract worth $12 million, pending a physical. This transaction occurred just minutes after the Guardians traded first baseman Josh Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks. This will be Santana's third stint with Cleveland. Last season, the veteran first baseman posted a .238/.328/.420 line with 23 home runs and four stolen bases in Minnesota. He tallied 71 RBI with 26 doubles. He showed a great eye at the plate with a strong 10.9% walk rate and 16.7% K rate which placed him in the 82nd and 79th percentile respectively among qualified hitters. He also held a slightly above average .330 xwOBA. Fantasy managers should expect Santana to operate as the everyday first baseman and does carry solid RBI upside this season batting behind Steven Kwan and Jose Ramirez.
Free-agent first baseman/designated hitter Carlos Santana, who is 38 years old, said he wants to play another three or four seasons in the big leagues, according to his agent, Ulises Cabrera. The veteran Dominican switch-hitter won his first career Gold Glove at first base with the Minnesota Twins in 2024 and is coming off his best OPS (.749) since 2019 with the Cleveland Guardians. In addition to his .749 OPS, he hit .238/.328/.420 with 23 home runs, 71 RBI, four stolen bases and 63 runs scored in 594 trips to the plate and 150 games for Minnesota in 2024 in his 15th major-league season. Santana has had a long and successful career as a patient hitter, with high on-base percentages being his calling card in fantasy. He's had a little resurgence the last two years, but fantasy managers can't count on that moving forward, and there's almost zero upside.
Minnesota Twins first baseman Carlos Santana (illness) is back in the starting lineup ahead of Monday's game against the Los Angeles Angels. The veteran switch-hitter sat out of Sunday's game due to a minor illness. Santana will cover first base and bat leadoff against left-hander Reid Detmers on Monday. The Twins have been having Santana bat leadoff against lefty starters lately, so we'll see if that ends up being a long term solution. The 38-year-old hasn't been great with the bat, but his 20 home runs gives him some fantasy value.
Carlos Santana Launches Go-Ahead Home Run On Saturday
Minnesota Twins first baseman Carlos Santana went 2-for-2 with a home run and two walks on Saturday afternoon to power the Twins to a victory. Santana broke a stalemate in the sixth inning with a solo shot which evened up being the game-winning run. This round-tripper snapped an 18-game power outage. The 38-year-old has been struggling at the plate through July as he entered this game with a poor .133/.235/.200 line and just two extra-base hits. However, in June, the switch-hitter held a stellar .337/.396/.565 line. Santana should continue to see an everyday role at first base in the Twins lineup, with occasional starts at DH. He remains a solid corner infield option in deeper AL-only leagues and is worth a look in favorable matchups in DFS.
Minnesota Twins first baseman Carlos Santana is taking the day off on Monday for the series opener against the hosting Chicago White Sox. Jose Miranda will take over at first base and bat cleanup, while rookie Brooks Lee will start at third and bat seventh against White Sox right-hander Chris Flexen. The 38-year-old veteran switch-hitter has been solid but not spectacular as Minnesota's regular first baseman this year, hitting .247 (72-for-291) with 12 homers, 40 RBI and an above-average .752 OPS. He'll make way for one of the hottest hitters in baseball in the early portion of July. Since June 26, Miranda has gone 22-for-38 (.579) with a homer, six doubles, 13 RBI, a steal and 11 runs scored in only 11 games. Meanwhile, Lee, one of the club's top prospects, looks like a seasoned vet with a .474 average (9-for-19) with a homer and six RBI in his first five big-league games.
Carlos Santana Hits Pinch-Hit Homer Against Rockies
Minnesota Twins first baseman Carlos Santana was 2-for-2 with a two-run home run after entering Tuesday's game against the Colorado Rockies as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning. The veteran slugger has been out of the starting lineup a few times over the past couple weeks. Santana endured a pretty underwhelming start to the season, but he is hitting .308 with two homers and six RBI over his past seven games. His season slash line still sits at an unsightly .221/.302/.404 to go along with 10 homers and 29 RBI. The 38-year-old can provide the occasional spark in the power department, but it seems like Santana's best fantasy days are behind him.
Minnesota Twins first baseman Carlos Santana went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer in Sunday's victory against the Toronto Blue Jays. The homer would be the seventh of the season for the veteran. Santana has shown up with power this season as he also has 21 RBI. The issue for Santana has been that he is only hitting .212, but he has been hitting the ball hard with an average exit velocity of 90.7 MPH. Managers in deeper leagues should consider Santana if power is needed, but with the expectation that he will sink managers batting average along the way.
Carlos Santana
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