The Guardians announced Tuesday that outfielder Roman Quinn has been released. He’d been playing with their Triple-A affiliate after signing a minor league deal over the winter but coming up shy of a roster spot in spring training. Quinn is now a free agent and will look to sign on with another club in search of some speed and/or outfield depth.
Quinn, 29, was once a touted prospect in the Phillies organization but has never found his footing in the big leagues. He appeared in 15 games with the Guardians’ Triple-A club this year but managed only a .176/.391/.235 batting line in 48 plate appearances. That comes on the heels of a .215/.287/.304 showing in 87 big league plate appearances between the Rays and Phillies in 2022.
In parts of six Major League seasons, Quinn has tallied 599 plate appearances with a tepid .226/.303/.348 batting line to show for his efforts. Contact has been a considerable problem for Quinn, who’s fanned in 30.4% of his plate appearances against an 8% walk rate.
While Quinn doesn’t hit much, he’s a flat-out burner on the basepaths and in the outfield — evidenced by a 96th-percentile ranking from Statcast for his average sprint speed during the 2022 season. Despite a paltry .303 career on-base percentage, Quinn has swiped 43 bases in 54 tries (79.6%). He’s also capable of playing all three outfield positions and has drawn above-average grades for his glovework from both Defensive Runs Saved and Statcast’s Outs Above Average.