The Guardians have agreed to a minor league contract with reliever Ian Gibaut, as announced by his reps at Fusion Sports Agency. The righty has suited up with three teams in as many seasons, including three appearances for the Twins last year. Outrighted off the Minnesota roster at the end of the season, he elected minor league free agency.
Gibaut, 28, has tossed 33 1/3 career innings in 27 appearances at the big league level. He’s pitched to a 5.40 ERA with a 22.5% strikeout rate and an alarming 13.9% walk percentage. However, Gibaut has averaged north of 95 MPH on his fastball in all three of his big league stints, and his 11.2% swinging strike rate isn’t far off the big league average for relievers.
The Tulane product was also a fairly well-regarded relief prospect as he climbed the minor league ladder in the Rays’ system. He has posted an ERA of 2.65 or lower at every level up through Double-A and owns a 4.31 mark over 117 career Triple-A frames. Gibaut has punched out nearly 30% of opposing hitters at the minors’ top level and he induced grounders on almost half the balls in play against him with the Twins’ top affiliate last year.