Guardians add veteran outfielder in trade with Nationals

The Guardians have landed outfielder Lane Thomas in a trade with the Nationals, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (X link).  Left-hander Alex Clemmey is part of the trade package headed back to D.C. in return, per Robert Murray of FanSided (via X).  

ESPN’s Jeff Passan was the first to report that the Nats will receive two other players in the trade and, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, those other players are infielders Jose Tena and Rafael Ramirez.

It was almost exactly three years ago that Thomas was part of another prominent deadline trade, coming to Washington from the Cardinals in exchange for Jon Lester. The move to the Nats and more consistent playing time unlocked something in Thomas, who performed brilliantly over the remainder of the 2021 season and then settled into a regular role in the Nationals outfield over the last three years.  This season, Thomas has hit .253/.331/.407 with eight homers and 28 steals (out of 40 attempts) over 341 plate appearances, despite missing about a month of action with a sprained MCL.

Thomas’ emergence in Washington was soon followed by more trade speculation as it wasn’t clear whether or not the Nationals would view this newfound breakout player as a building block or as a trade asset to aid in their rebuild. Monday's move answers that question as the Nats have dealt Thomas (who turns 29 next month) in the second of his three arbitration-eligible seasons.  Thomas is earning $5.45M this season and will be in for a raise next year before hitting the free-agency market in the 2025-26 offseason.

This extra year of control adds to Thomas’ trade value and, ironically, the Guards themselves have traditionally looked to deal such increasingly pricey players as they approach the end of their team control. With Cleveland in first place in the AL Central, the Guardians have instead looked to bolster their roster in major fashion as Thomas can step right in as the team’s new regular right fielder. The left-handed hitting Will Brennan should still get a decent chunk of at-bats since Thomas has been much better against southpaws than against right-handed pitchers this season, but Thomas brings a needed right-handed bat to a Cleveland lineup perhaps a bit overloaded with lefty-swingers and switch-hitters.

The Guardians are opting for extra hitting over defense here, as Thomas’ public defensive metrics (-9 Defensive Runs Saved, -8.1 UZR/150, -7 Outs Above Average) have been very lacking. Cleveland has traditionally prioritized glovework in the outfield, yet while the lineup’s production has been better in 2024 than in recent seasons, Guardians hitters have provided roughly average numbers league-wide.  It seems quite possible the Guardians might still address their bigger need for rotation help before Tuesday's deadline, but the Thomas trade is a key first step toward upgrading the roster for the stretch run.

From Washington’s perspective, the three-player package is a nice return for a season and two months’ worth of Thomas’ services. The Nationals have added one MLB-ready player in Tena who has already gotten some time in The Show and two longer-term assets, including a noteworthy pitching prospect in Clemmey.

Cleveland’s second-round pick in the 2023 draft, Clemmey is just 11 days removed from his 19th birthday and he has a 4.67 ERA over 69 1/3 innings at A-level Lynchburg this season.  Clemmey has struck out batters at an impressive 32.6 percent rate, but his 15.8 percent walk rate is evidence of some control issues early in his pro career.

Baseball America ranked Clemmey seventh among Guardians prospects and MLB Pipeline had him eighth on their list with both outlets wowed by his high-90s fastball. The fastball earned a 70 grade from both scouting reports and his curveball received a 60, giving him some impressive upside for rotation work if he can develop at least one more quality offering. While projections might be a bit difficult for such a young pitcher, Clemmey already looks like he could be a quality reliever, though obviously the Nationals will fully explore his potential as a starter.

Ramirez was ranked 20th in BA’s list of Guardians prospects and 22nd by MLB Pipeline. He is the son of former Braves/Astros infielder Rafael Ramirez Sr., and while the elder Ramirez spent most of his 13 major league seasons at shortstop, the 19-year-old Ramirez might eventually end up as a third baseman or second baseman, per the scouting reports. Ramirez is in his third year of pro ball and hasn’t hit much in A-ball this season after posting much bigger numbers in rookie ball in 2023.

Tena made his big league debut in the form of 18 games and 34 PA for Cleveland last season, and he has appeared in three games for the Guardsian in 2024.  n international signing in 2017, Tena has spent his whole career in Cleveland’s farm system and he has an eye-popping .308/.365/.522 slash line to go with 22 homers in 494 career PA at the Triple-A level.

Despite these big numbers, the 23-year-old Tena always seemed to be a bit of an odd man out amidst the Guardians’ infield picture, especially with Jose Ramirez and Andres Gimenez locking down two positions. Tena’s big strikeout numbers probably didn’t play well within a Cleveland organization that prizes contact hitting, but he’ll now get another opportunity in the District.  

The Nationals have an infield cornerstone of their own in CJ Abrams while Luis Garcia Jr. has done well to re-establish himself as a regular second baseman. However, Tena could potentially look to make an impact at third base or in a utility role.