The Guardians are open to trade offers on first baseman Josh Naylor and outfielder Lane Thomas, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. It’s unclear at this point which teams may be involved or if substantial offers have already been received.
The fact that the players are potentially available is not surprising. At the end of October, just as the offseason was getting going, MLBTR put both on our list of potential trade candidates for this winter. Like many lower-spending clubs, the Guardians are generally willing to consider trades of players as they get more expensive and their window of club control shrinks. These two players are just one year away from free agency, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting Naylor for a $12MM salary and Thomas for $8.3MM.
Those are perfectly acceptable prices for those players but considering trades at this juncture is how clubs like the Guardians, Rays and Brewers operate. By consistently trading a year or two of a solid but somewhat expensive player for younger, cheaper and more controllable alternatives, the organizations stay continually well stocked with talent. That allows the clubs to stay fairly consistently competitive despite a lack of spending in free agency. The Guards have gone down this path before with players like Francisco Lindor, Carlos Carrasco, Corey Kluber and others in previous years.
Naylor, 28 in June, has been a consistent spark in the Cleveland lineup for three years now. He doesn’t walk a ton but avoids strikeouts and has popped at least 17 home runs in each of the past three campaigns, including 31 in the most recent season. He has a combined .267/.330/.465 batting line over those three years for a 121 wRC+, indicating he was 21% better than league average in that stretch.
Defensively, the metrics have been fairly kind to him overall. With almost 3,000 innings of first base work under his belt, he’s produced 10 Outs Above Average. His mark of -4 Defensive Runs Saved is obviously less impressive but that metric had him above average before a -6 grade in 2024, which might be an odd outlier.
Putting the offense and defense together, plus a few steals here and there, Naylor has been worth about two or three wins above replacement per year in that stretch. For his salary, that should give him plenty of appeal this offseason.
The free agent market features some big-name first basemen like Pete Alonso, Christian Walker and Paul Goldschmidt, but each of those will be costly. Alonso and Walker are both lined up for nice multi-year deals and each of them also rejected a qualifying offer, meaning they are tied to the forfeiture of draft picks and maybe international bonus pool money as well. Goldschmidt didn’t get a QO and may be limited to a one-year deal because of his age, but there’s still plenty of risk in such an investment since he struggled a bit in 2024. For clubs that don’t want to pay those kinds of prices or simply miss out in the bidding there, they could give the Guardians a call.
Thomas, 29, likely has less appeal on the trade market. His projected salary is a little lower but his ability to contribute is also a bit narrower as he’s a right-handed hitter who is better against lefties. For his career, he has slashed .302/.366/.514 with the platoon advantage for a 140 wRC+, but .223/.290/.391 against righties for an 87 wRC+. Defensively, he can play all three outfield positions, with the metrics considering him around league average in center.
The platoon splits suggest he would be best utilized in a part-time role, but the lack of center field options in free agency could work in his favor. Harrison Bader is the top of the free agent class as a solid defender but with a subpar bat.
There is risk in Cleveland subtracting bats, as their offense wasn’t their strongest asset in 2024. Their elite bullpen carried them to the postseason, with the team hitting a collective .238/.307/.395 for a 100 wRC+. It was even worse the year before, as they hit .250/.313/.381 in 2023 for a 91 wRC+ with the lowest home run tally in the majors. Removing Naylor or Thomas from the lineup would be a gamble but the Guards would have fallback options. Kyle Manzardo could take over for Naylor as an everyday first baseman while players like Will Brennan, Tyler Freeman or Ángel Martínez could take over in center.
Naturally, a trade coming together would depend on what other clubs are offering. For Thomas in particular, the Guards just gave up a three-player package to get him from the Nationals at the deadline, surrendering Alex Clemmey, José Tena and Rafael Ramirez. Clemmey was just drafted with a second-round pick in 2023 and given a $2.3MM bonus, so that was a significant sacrifice. They likely wouldn’t flip Thomas just to get anything in return.
The Guardians are reportedly looking into the outfield market and could use some help in the rotation as well, so there may be a bit of musical chairs happening here. Perhaps a trade of Naylor and/or Thomas could be used to add some young talent to the system, with the cost savings redirected to replacing some of the lost production on the major league roster. RosterResource projects the club for a $98MM payroll in 2025, right around where they were to start 2024.
Teams like the Royals, Reds, Phillies, Dodgers, Red Sox, Orioles and others are reportedly looking for outfield help or make sense for a right-handed addition, while clubs like the Pirates, Tigers, Astros, Nationals, Mariners, Yankees, Diamondbacks and others could be looking for help at first base.
Yankees can trade for naylor to replace soto’s bat in the lineup
I just vomited a little in my mouth.
No thanks, chubsy ubsy can go elsewhere.
Considering chubsy is a lefty, & RF is 310 ft away he might smash 40+ bombs & yankees do have a 1st base vacancy
He would have hit 31 if he played every game at T-Mobile Park last season. I think he could easily mash 40 at Yankee Stadium.
I could see him devouring lots of mashed potatoes and gravy. But I don’t want that chubby baby rocking in NY.
“chubsy ubsy ” — I like that. Made me laugh.
Rock the baby!
Naylor once shouted he wanted all the smoke. Could he handle the smoke from Yankee fans?
This would make NYC hot dog venders and pizza joints very happy.
I think the Guardians should trade Naylor but he isn’t worth much. As for Thomas that makes no sense they need to add an outfielder not subtract one.
I’m firmly in the camp for keeping Thomas because if they don’t I could totally see them running Straw back out there because of his contract. Straw made ZERO improvement in Columbus last year, so there is no one less deserving to have a roster spot. Naylor should net us a viable SP, and that’s really all they should take in return.
I wonder what the value would be for Naylor or Thomas.
Naylor has maybe 5 million in surplus value tops. It’s not a lot. And watching him in last years playoffs the guy needs to get his weight under control.
That’s where the power comes from. Like Cecil Fielder. Donut power.
If I was CLE I would have tried to extend Thomas for like 4 or 5 years.
They may have done this (maybe less years) and don’t feel they are close to completing a deal
Why would you extend Thomas?!?!
On a good team Thomas is on the “wrong side” of a platoon. He’s *not* a young kid, he’ll be 30 in July. Against RHP he’s a .223/.290/..391 hitter in over 1,400 AB. He doesn’t walk (career high 44 BB) and he strikes out too much. Defensively, over his career he’s been worth negative runs saved (-10 in LF, -1 in CF and -4 in RF.) To sign an extension and give up a chance at free agency, want more than the $ he’s projected to get in arbitration. Giving him that kind of a contract is financial malpractice.
Don’t extend him or sign him for your team then.
There seems to be a very narrow amount of players that fit in CLEs budget. They possibly have a small window of time to try to win a championship. Offense is their biggest need although pitching also but they seem to be good at bringing up homegrown pitchers from their minors.
In a better lineup he would have better protection and get better pitches to hit. Some players get better, some get worse, lack of effort/preparation etc., injuries – some results about the same.
I didn’t state how much per year I would offer him and what would be my maximum $’s
Only way to tell is to have a real life simulation and play the games IRL. CLE needs to be savvy and make 4 or 5 additions. Guys like Thomas, Bader, Kepler and Urshela shouldn’t be out of their price range.
Despite the Guardians already having several LH outfielders, Mike Yastrzemski would fit very well on that team and at a price they can afford [$9.25M].
There isn’t a team in MLB that would give Thomas a 4 or 5 year deal.
An extension for what reason?
It’s just part of interaction to ask for further reason for their takes. Especially if it is uncommon.
Please Mariners! Go get Josh Naylor!
I like the fit but what’s the offer for one year of control?
I’d sooner take Walker or Santana if I am Seattle. This guy would hit 20 hr in Seattle. And I don’t think they can afford the catering bill.
Walkers not coming here. Santana would be fine but I’m not sure bringing back Turner doesn’t net the same result.
With all the A’s talk Josh Naylor would make their lineup very scary with Rooker and Sac-town has the prospects to make a trade happen.
Soderstrom is the A’s 1B now and he’s a very solid hitter. Seems like a weird fit.
Tyler has options and needs a bit more AAA seasoning. He was rushed and not quite ready for prime time. His MLB numbers bear that.
Kurtz needs a spot, don’t know if he can play OF, but he can hit bombs.
He’ll have to play 1st or DH, be interesting to see how that works out because Rooker has the most potential to return a nice haul of prospects in a trade.
Cleveland’s payroll in 2024 was just over $98 million. In 2001 it was a bit over $93 million. These greedy owners need called out for this and we need to report this as clubs who choose not to spend money, not clubs that don’t have it.
@lollar2112
Greedy players expecting to be paid millions of dollars to play a kids sport. Take your minimum wage and a stick of gum and go work on the farm in the offseason.
It’s more of just a media narrative than the truth. Cleveland doesn’t need to cut payroll. They are just good at trades, player development, and managing peak value of players. So unloading these two is the correct business move pending on return.
They are also humble enough not needing a blockbuster return for Thomas
What’s even more appalling is that Dolan is in the top ten of richest owners in baseball. But hey they signed Hedges
Look at what Cleveland brings in. It has nothing to do with what the owner is worth and everything to do with the income disparity in the sport.
They do pretty well with what they have.
You will notice they do not sell out every game anymore.
Pirates should offer Davis, Suwinski, and Bednar for both
This is quantity over quality. No thanks!
And saving 12 million, while adding 2 significantly younger more controllable batters which is priority for Cleveland, while also adding a potential closer, but ya
Yes, Cleveland definitely needs a closer. They don’t have the best closer in baseball or anything.
They won’t after they trade him this off season
Ya Clase, the closer who was gassed in the playoffs and blew it for them.
This trade is absolutely a huge steal for Guardians
First of all, the package would be the same with or without Lane Thomas ,
who’s pretty much negative-trade value as far as return-assets
(The Lane aspect is pretty much Lane for Suwinski)
Henry Davis is still as good a prospect as any that you could get when trading a dead-end contract like Naylor or Lane
Adding Bednar as the extra juice to that deal would be an absolute steal.
More likely expect a Braxton Ashcraft-type as the 3rd asset involved
Spare parts that do nothing to help the Guardians.
How about a 1st overall pick who could still become a top 50 major league bat?
If the Nats don’t get Alonso or Walker in free agency, a trade for Naylor makes sense IMO. He’s only 27, and if the Nats got him now they could hopefully work out a long term contract thst keeps him with the club as guys like Wood, Crews, House, et al. develop and the club hopefully enters a new playoff window. He doesn’t have Boras for an agent, so if the deal’s good enough he might be willing to sign and not enter free agency
House started pro ball as a SS, and the Nats got 3B Cayden Wallace from the Royals in the Hunter Harvey deal. If the Nats don’t think Abrams is really going to develop into a star, an Abrams for Naylor (and maybe a bullpen arm like Walters?) deal might be something the Guardians would do.
Abrams is an overpay, even if they’ve soured on him, and House isn’t ready, whether at SS or 3B. Doesn’t really make sense to create a short-term hole at SS for a one-year rental. That only works with a Naylor extension, and I’m not sure he’s a valuable enough addition for that. Better to just pivot to another stopgap free agent if they don’t sign a Walker or Alonso.
I think the Nats will target Christian Walker. Veteran presence, good defender so little risk of having to move him to DH, 3-year contract so they can see how their young hitters progress in those three years.
Naylor might be a good fit on the Astros, especially if the Astros do manage to bring Bregman back and are budget constrained.
This is a good assessment. Astros for fatty.
Cleveland has very few players on the roster that are untouchable in trades and that includes both Josh Naylor and Thomas. Everyone else among the anticipated 13 roster players are also tradeable and would not be missed or cannot easily be replaced. Among the 13 pitchers, probably half could be culled. They need more than “complementary” players. They need an impact player or two. The trick is trading guys to make the team better, not just less expensive. But they will try to piece it together, they’ve been successful when the central was weak but its not weak anymore. They risk falling behind KC and Detroit and of course the twins will be a factor. Luck goes only so far. I think that this will be a filler year while they wait for Brito, Bazzana, Delauter, mckenzie and stephan as well as some of the farm pitching to develop. 2025 belongs to detroit and kansas city.
Cleveland, like Tampa, is a next man up franchise and that’s regardless of what they accomplished the year prior as it’s in the past. And in 26, they’ll have neither so your wrong here. There’s a value placed on both players and if they are offered a greater value than the player has on the team – they will be unloaded with out hesitation
Did you just start following Cleveland? Naylor and Thomas are far from untouchable. Tbh that’s almost as dumb as all the comments from Yankees fans
Thomas would pair well with Marsh in Philly in left field, but not sure how much the Phils would be willing to give up for a weak side platoon OF. Would Saltiban and McGarry be enough to swing a deal?
A’s should start collecting Naylors now. Josh has some added value in fan appeal – he’s just an entertaining guy to have on your team.
Meanwhile, back on the farm, Noel & Brito should start taking reps at 1B now.
Thomas would make sense for the Red Sox as a RH option and he’s not very expensive. Not sure what Cleveland would want for him though
The Reds can send Will Benson back for either one of them.
Naylor, Thomas & Time Herrin to Seattle for Randy Arozarena and Emerson Hancock. Mariners get their first basemen in Naylor. Lane Thomas mans LF against lefty pitchers and Luke Raley in LF against RH pitching or he can play first so Naylor can DH a bit. Herrin is under team control until 2030. He’s a lefty reliever coming off a strong year in the bullpen for Cleveland. And the M’s need a lefty reliever bad.
M’s take on Thomas salary of $8m for one year and Naylors salary of $12m for one year before they hit free agency after 2025. M’s shed Arozarena’s salary who will become expensive in the coming years (2025-$11.7m, 2026-$20m).
Gaurdians fix their OF problem with a solid OF in Randy, and also get Hancock with team control until 2030.
Hopefully with these money saving moves for the M’s, they will extend their young pitching core and Cal Releigh or even possibly Naylor if he works out in Seattle. If anything, M’s will have money available to spend in the coming years to improve the team.
Yes. M’s fan here. 😉
CLE would be trying to dump salary. Why would they trade for Arozarena?
Seems like pretty weak offerings. Pass.
I’m curious what type of return they will be looking to get for these corner types.
love the idea of naylor at first in pittsburgh. a potential real power bat that is not a strike out machine and a 2-3fwar player. I’d definitely look at the free agent options like Goldy because it would just be money not talent given up.. but if those dry up Naylor looks good.
Lane also looks a decent option for a pirates upgrade as well. not a huge bat but compared to 2024 putting colin moran in center field may have been an upgrade (/s) but also there are OF FA’s that would also be an upgrade that wouldn’t require sending talent away.
if one or both could be added and the season looks like a bust then flipping them probably could happen so +/-
Dodgers have interest in both of them
I think that the bridge between Naylor and Yankee fans is burnt and as such that even if the smart baseball move is to go get him that he isn’t on their radar. I’d much rather pay cash for Bellinger if all it takes is a small prospect and to pay his salary.
But neither move matters if they don’t gett Soto. They either have Soto and a chance to grab another pennant or they overpay and overextend themselves trying to change all the bad PR.
Realistically if they could get Soto and Bellinger and a pitcher with some trades to fill out the bench and pen, it would be a big upgrade instead of a downgrade with any plan B.
Yankees know they ain’t getting Soto. Thats why they are linked to every big name available
If the Yankees want to pay all of Bellinger’s salary, they can probably get him in exchange for three DSL guys picked at random from a hat.
Indians and reds have trade history. Thomas salary is feasible in cicny too. I prefer more of a power bat but for a couple mid level prospects, Thomas is a decent option for them
Since he started playing 1B full time in 2022, Naylor has averaged 1.9 WAR. Almost league average. That is not horrible.
At $12 million salary Naylor is not worth giving up top prospects for, but his level of performance and salary is enough that the Guardians will get several 2nd tier prospects or a solid MLB ready prospect and a low-level prospect for him. Of course, they seem to turn those low-level prospects into very good MLB players like Clase.
Why break up the system that currently works.
Naylor? I barely know her!
I really wonder what kind of return either player would receive. If they can trade them to address other roster needs, it makes sense.. ot is difficult to see them being traded for prospects in the offseason though.