Guardians notes: Cleveland adds outfield depth, claims Ramon Laureano off waivers

CLEVELAND — The Guardians added depth to the outfield Monday, claiming Ramon Laureano off waivers from the Oakland A's. Laureano, 29, is a career .246 hitter over six seasons — all with Oakland. "He's got a reputation of being a really good kid," manager Terry Francona said of Laureano, who was batting .213 with six home runs and 21 RBIs over 64 games when he was designated for assignment Saturday. "He's been a really good outfielder. I believe his offensive numbers are way down from what he's done before." Laureano batted .211 with 13 homers over 94 games last year. His best season in the majors came in 2019, when he hit .288 with 24 homers in 123 games. The center fielder by trade is expected to arrive in Cleveland today, but Francona was unsure of his role. "We've been dealing with so much today and trying to get through all the suspensions, I really don't know quite yet," Francona said. "There's so many moving parts with our team right now that I don't know, because one move so often necessitates something else happening." To clear room for Laureano on the 26-man roster, the Guardians are expected to place David Fry on the injured list Tuesday with a hamstring strain. Fry, who has proven capable off the bench with a .250 batting average, four homers and 13 RBIs in 42 games, was active for the series opener against the Blue Jays on Monday. "He's like an emergency guy," Francona said. "We didn't want to call somebody up for one day, especially when he could catch if need be." Francona praised Fry's toughness. "When he got here today, he was like, 'I think I could play tonight," Francona said. "And I told him after we got the (MRI) results back, I said, 'You're kind of a throwback, and I mean that in a good way. You're carving yourself out a nice little niche on our team, so let's take care of this.' "Don't want him to hurt himself. I mean he hurt it the other night (while stretching for a double play at first) and stayed in the game and wouldn't even bring it up. Trainers went over to him a couple times. He had nothing to do with it." Doctor's office Right-hander Cal Quantrill (shoulder inflammation) is scheduled to make a rehab appearance tonight with Triple-A Columbus in Toledo. Quantrill, who has been sidelined since July 6 in his second stint on the IL this year, is expected to throw around 60 pitches. Roundin' third Francona entered Monday needing one win to reach 900 during his tenure in Cleveland, owning an 899-729 record (.552) over 11 seasons. Francona, manager of the year three times with Cleveland (2013, '16 and '22), recently passed Casey Stengel for 13th-most wins in MLB history (1,928). l Jose Ramirez entered Monday leading the majors with 465 extra-base hits since 2017 — 16 more than the Dodgers' Mookie Betts. Contact Chris Assenheimer at (440) 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter @CAwesomeheimer.