Guardians' Glaring Offseason Blunder Looking More and More Grim

The Cleveland Guardians are well known for not spending a whole lot of money, and that includes on their own players. So, no one was overly surprised when the Guardians decided to trade All-Star first baseman Josh Naylor this past winter.

However, the return Cleveland received from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Naylor was particularly puzzling, as the Guardians only landed pitcher Slade Cecconi and a conditional draft pick.

For a Cleveland franchise that is generally known for making shrewd moves, this one was a bit of a head-scratcher considering that Cecconi posted a 6.66 ERA (yikes) alongside of an alarming 1.416 WHIP over 20 appearances and 13 starts last season.

Where is Cecconi now? On the injured list nursing an oblique strain, and even when he gets healthy, there is no guarantee he will make his way onto the Guardians' big-league roster. Heck, he owns a lifetime 4.73 ERA in the minors, so what exactly did Cleveland see in him that would lead it to believe that he was a good piece to extract for Naylor, who logged over 30 home runs and 100 RBI in 2024?

Meanwhile, Naylor has been raking in Arizona, as the 27-year-old is slashing .333/.406/.548 with four home runs and 15 RBI across 96 plate appearances thus far. Early in the season? Sure, but Naylor did hit .308 with an .842 OPS in 2023, and he was critical to the Guardians' success last year.

Cleveland moved Naylor because he is set to hit free agency next offseason, and the Guardians obviously don't want to pay him. This even though Cleveland made it all the way to the ALCS last October. The Guardians replaced him with Carlos Santana, who lays claim to a .612 OPS thus far in 2025.

Not surprisingly, Cleveland's offense is struggling as a whole, owning a .716 OPS. While that isn't completely awful, the Guardians have amassed a grand total of 92 runs, which ranks 20th in baseball.

Here's the thing: Cleveland's offense was an issue even with Naylor in the lineup last year, so how did the Guardians think they would manage without him, especially without a comparable replacement?

Cleveland operates differently than big-market organizations. This is a known fact. But if the Guardians were going to move Naylor (and they did), they should have done a better job of getting a better return while also acquiring a more adequate substitution in the process.

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