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Nationals Designate Juan Yepez For Assignment

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The Nationals announced a series of roster moves today. Outfielder Robert Hassell III and infielder José Tena have been optioned to Triple-A Rochester. Outfielder Daylen Lile has been recalled while third baseman Brady House has had his contract selected. Those four moves were reported yesterday. To open a 40-man spot for House, the Nats designated first baseman Juan Yepez for assignment.

Yepez, 27, first joined the Nationals via a minor league deal going into the 2024 season. He got added to the club’s roster in July and got fairly regular playing time in the second half of last year. He slashed .283/.335/.429 for a 113 wRC+ in 249 plate appearances.

Coming into 2025, the Nats made a couple of additions to the first base/designated hitter mix, acquiring Nathaniel Lowe from the Rangers and also signing free agent Josh Bell. Those moves pushed Yepez down the depth chart and he was optioned to Rochester to start the year. He has since appeared in 45 games for the Red Wings with a .199/.273/.301 line and 56 wRC+. He hasn’t been helped by a .212 batting average on balls in play but he also has only three home runs.

Yepez has some experience at other positions but is mostly just a first baseman. He hasn’t played third base since 2022 and his work in the outfield corners has been very limited. He’s not really a threat on the basepaths either. In short, he needs to hit. The fact that he hasn’t done so this year has hurt his value and bumped him off Washington’s roster. He’s also in his final option year, so he’s down to a few months where he can be easily sent to the minors.

He’s now in DFA limbo, which can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the Nats could take five days to explore trades. He’s been a roughly average big league hitter in 588 plate appearances between the Cardinals and Nationals but this year’s struggles on the farm will naturally tamp down interest.

If he is passed through outright waivers unclaimed, he will stick with the club as depth without taking up a roster spot. He won’t have the right to elect free agency since he has less than three years of service time and hasn’t been previously outrighted in his career.

Photo courtesy of Daniel Kucin Jr., Imagn Images

Nationals To Promote Brady House

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The Nationals optioned outfielder Robert Hassell III and infielder Jose Tena to Triple-A after today’s game, per a club announcement. The corresponding moves for those transactions have not yet been formally announced, but Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports that the club plans to select the contract of top infield prospect Brady House and recall outfielder Daylen Lile.

House, 22, was drafted 11th overall by the Nats in 2021 and was a consensus top-100 prospect in the sport as recently as last season. The third baseman enjoyed a breakout season in 2023, when he rocketed from Single-A to Double-A over the course of a single campaign and slashed .312/.365/.497 with 12 homers and nine steals in just 88 games. That 20/20 potential combined with solid defense at the hot corner was enough to send House soaring up to prospect boards in spite of his low walk rate and 23.9% strikeout rate, but a disappointing 2024 campaign was enough to quell the excitement regarding the infielder’s future. In a return to Double-A last year, he hit a somewhat middling .234/.310/.423 in 75 games before being promoted to Triple-A.

House’s first taste of the highest level of the minors knocked him for a loop with a .250/.280/.375 line in 54 games, but he returned to the level better equipped in 2025. This year, he’s looked excellent at the plate for Triple-A Rochester with a .301/.349/.516 (126 wRC+) line in 64 games with 14 doubles, 13 homers, and a triple in that time. That’s exciting power from a strong defender at third base, though that high batting average should not be expected to transfer over to the majors. House has long been criticized by scouts for his hit tool, and he’s benefited from a .376 BABIP so far with Rochester that’s unlikely to be sustainable. Between that high BABIP and a 27.0% strikeout rate, House could struggle to get on base with regularity in the majors but figures to make up for that with above-average pop and an impressive glove.

House’s promotion to the majors completes the Nationals’ infield after the club opted to leave the position to part-time options like Amed Rosario, Paul DeJong, and Tena throughout the first few months of the season as they awaited House’s eventual promotion. DeJong appeared in just 16 games before being sidelined by injury, but Tena and Rosario have formed a roughly league average platoon at the hot corner to this point in the year. Tena is headed to Triple-A for the time being but has been a very pleasant surprise for the Nationals since he was acquired from Cleveland last year. He’s hit a nearly league average .261/.312/.364 across 84 games in a Nationals uniform, and his positional versatility and left-handed bat should make him a valuable bench piece and depth starter for the team going forward.

Joining Tena in packing his bags for Rochester is Hassell, a former top-100 prospect who made his MLB debut just last month. Hassell has hit a paltry .230/.240/.284 (44 wRC+) in 20 games with the Nationals since being called up to the majors, and his departure should allow Jacob Young and his top-of-the-scale defense in center field to reclaim a larger role on the team going forward. Young will be backed up in the outfield by Lile, who went 6-for-31 at the plate with three doubles, two walks, and a triple when he made his big league debut in an 11-game cup of coffee earlier this year. The left-handed Lile figures to serve as a complement to the righty-swinging Young in center field, at least until Dylan Crews returns from the injured list.

Guardians Acquire Lane Thomas

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The Guardians have landed outfielder Lane Thomas in a trade with the Nationals, both teams announced. A trio of prospects — left-hander Alex Clemmey and infielders Jose Tena and Rafael Ramirez — are going back to Washington.

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.  Today’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 $5.45MM 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 added 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, Guards hitters have provided roughly average numbers league-wide.  It seems quite possible the Guardians might still address their bigger need for rotation help before tomorrow’s deadline, but the Thomas trade is a key first step towards 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% rate, but his 15.8% 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, as 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 Guards in 2024.  An 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 and 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 Guards’ 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 and Luis Garcia Jr. has done well to re-establish himself as a regular second baseman, though Tena could potentially look to make an impact at third base or in a utility role.

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (X link) was the first to report that Cleveland acquired Thomas, and FanSided’s Robert Murray (via X) reported that Clemmey was part of the trade package.  ESPN’s Jeff Passan specified that the Nationals would be receiving three players in return for Thomas, and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale was the first to report on the inclusion of Tena and Ramirez.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

The Guardians’ Shortstop Competition

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The Guardians are set to turn shortstop to a young infielder who hasn’t established himself at the MLB level. Last year’s Opening Day starter, Amed Rosario, was shipped off at the deadline. While he’s available in free agency, Cleveland isn’t likely to bring him back. They should have a competition between at least two fairly well-regarded young infielders in camp and during the early part of the upcoming season.

Let’s take a look at the possibilities:

Among returnees, no one played shortstop more frequently last season. He worked as the primary starter after Rosario was traded. Arias picked up 46 starts and logged 402 innings at the position overall. Defensive Runs Saved graded him as a neutral defender, while Statcast felt he was slightly better than average. Arias had a strong reputation as a defender during his time as a prospect, showcasing plus arm strength with the hands and lateral agility to stick at the position.

Arias would be a clear defensive upgrade on Rosario. The question is how much of an offensive impact he’d make. He hit just .210/.275/.352 over 345 plate appearances last season. MLB pitching exploited longstanding questions about his strike zone feel. Arias struck out nearly a third of the time. He chased pitches off the plate with regularity and swung through 19.5% of the offerings he saw. Of the 293 hitters who logged at least 300 plate appearances, only four swung and missed more frequently.

Despite the middling offensive output, Arias enters camp as the presumptive favorite. In a reader mailbag this week, MLB.com’s Mandy Bell suggested the Guardians were likely to give him the first opportunity to seize the job. Arias’ 2023 season was cut short by a non-displaced fracture in his right wrist when he was hit by a pitch in the final week of September. There’s no indication that he won’t be fully healthy for his age-24 season. Arias still has a minor league option, so the Guardians can send him to Triple-A, but it’d be a surprise if he isn’t on the Opening Day roster.

Rocchio, a switch-hitter, has been on the prospect radar for some time. Baseball America has included him among their Top 100 minor league talents four years running. Having recently turned 23, he seems likely to exhaust his rookie eligibility this year.

Cleveland gave Rocchio a brief MLB look last season. He was first promoted in April and bounced on and off the club on five separate occasions. Rocchio didn’t much make of an impact in his first 86 plate appearances. He didn’t hit a home run and limped to a .247/.279/.321 batting line. It wasn’t the most impressive showing, but it’s also probably not worth making a judgment off a limited sample spread across scattered views at big league pitching.

In 537 plate appearances for Triple-A Columbus, Rocchio turned in a solid .280/.367/.421 showing. He walked nearly as often as he struck out. Rocchio took free passes at an 11.2% clip while punching out just 12.3% of the time. The Guardians prioritize bat-to-ball skills, perhaps more than any other team. It’s fair to question how much power upside he possesses in a slight frame — he hit just seven homers in Triple-A — but he’s more of a prototypical Cleveland hitter than Arias is.

Baseball America remains bullish on his chances of carving out a productive career. He ranked as the #2 prospect in the Cleveland system and in the back half of their overall Top 100 this offseason. The outlet credits his advanced feel for hitting from both sides of the plate and gap power. He’s regarded as a solid defender with excellent baseball instincts. Rocchio has one option remaining.

Freeman also falls into the archetypal “Guardians hitter” mold. He makes a ton of contact with minimal power. The right-handed hitter appeared in 64 big league contests last season, posting a modest .242/.295/.366 batting line. He was far better in a 24-game look in Triple-A, where he hit .319/.457/.462 with almost as many walks (12.9%) as strikeouts (13.8%).

While he has a broadly similar offensive profile to Rocchio, he’s not as highly-regarded defensively. The Guardians used him more frequently at third base than shortstop last season, but he doesn’t have a path to consistent playing time at the hot corner unless José Ramírez suffers an injury. Freeman turns 25 in May and is entering his final option year, so this could be something of a make-or-break year for him to establish himself as a long-term piece in Cleveland.

It’d be a surprise if Tena’s in the mix for everyday shortstop work, at least early in the year. The left-handed hitter could play a multi-positional role off the bench and rotate through the position at times. Tena was called to the big leagues for the first time in early August. He only received 34 MLB plate appearances and struggled in that minuscule sample (.226/.294/.290). The 22-year-old (23 in March) spent most of last season at Double-A Akron. He posted a .260/.353/.370 line over 362 trips to the plate. Tena walked at a strong 11.3% clip but struck out in an alarming 28.7% of his plate appearances. He still has an option remaining and will probably start the year in Columbus.

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Cleveland also has a pair of upper minors middle infield prospects on the 40-man roster. Juan Brito, whom they acquired from Colorado in last year’s Nolan Jones trade, briefly reached Triple-A after posting an impressive .276/.373/.444 slash over 87 Double-A contests. Switch-hitting Angel Martínez combined for a .251/.321/.394 line between the top two minor league levels as a 21-year-old.

Brito and Martínez are probably each better suited for second base. It’s unlikely either breaks camp with Cleveland, but they’re both in close enough proximity to potentially factor into the middle infield competition during the ’24 season. If either plays his way to the second base job, the Guardians could consider sliding Andrés Giménez back to shortstop. Giménez played exclusively at the keystone last year but posted solid defensive metrics in his early-career work on the left side of the diamond.

Guardians Acquire Kole Calhoun, Place Josh Naylor On Injured List

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3:20pm: Manager Terry Francona tells reporters that an MRI indeed revealed a strained oblique for Naylor (link via Lewis). The team has placed a tentative timetable of three to six weeks on his recovery, but he’ll be evaluated weekly to see if that timeline changes. If it proves to be on the longer end of that recovery window, Naylor would miss the majority of the remaining season.

1:50pm: The Guardians on Friday placed first baseman Josh Naylor and infielder Tyler Freeman on the injured list, tweets Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon-Journal. Cleveland also called up infielder Jose Tena and acquired veteran outfielder Kole Calhoun from the Dodgers in exchange for cash. He’s been selected to the Major League roster. Calhoun was eligible to be traded by virtue of the fact that has not been on a 40-man roster or Major League injured list this season. (You can read more about how to acquire players after the trade deadline here.)

Naylor was scratched from the lineup earlier this week due to an oblique injury and is now sidelined at least 10 days — though even Grade 1 oblique strains can often sideline a player up to a month. The 28-year-old has been enjoying a breakout season, slashing .306/.346/.500 with 15 home runs, 25 doubles and six steals. Naylor looked like a lock to set new career-highs in homers and doubles, topping last season’s respective personal records of 20 and 28. It remains to be seen just how long he’ll be sidelined, but so long as he doesn’t face a lengthy stay on the IL, he still appears in good position to do so. Either way, his excellent production will give him a notable raise over this year’s $3.35MM salary.

Freeman, 24, has yet to receive a chance to settle into a regular role in Cleveland despite long ranking as one of the system’s top prospects. He’s an advanced hitter who’s lacking power but is touted for his excellent contact skills and hit tool. He’s punched out in just 13.8% of his big league plate appearances and is batting .286/.344/.357 in 95 plate appearances this year. The trade of Amed Rosario opened up some additional reps in the Cleveland infield, but Freeman’s shoulder strain will deprive him of further opportunities for the time being.

The veteran Calhoun, 35, was in spring training with the Mariners and has since signed minor league deals with the Yankees and Dodgers. None of those clubs gave the former Angels All-Star a look in the Majors, despite Calhoun doing his best to force the issue. Though he’s struggled to a .208/.269/.343 batting line over the past two big league seasons, Calhoun has posted terrific numbers in Triple-A this season, slashing .297/.376/.530 in 266 plate appearances. He’s swatted nine homers, 17 doubles and five triples — all while walking in just over 10% of his plate appearances and striking out at a lower-than-average 18% clip.

Tena will make his big league debut when he first takes the field. He’s not as touted as some of the Guardians’ other young middle infield but is still a prospect of some note. The 22-year-old had just been bumped up for his Triple-A debut (during which he went 1-for-3 with a double) after hitting .260/.353/.370 in 362 Double-A plate appearances. That stop in Columbus will prove little more than a layover en route to Cleveland. Baseball America ranks Tena 14th among Cleveland prospects, crediting him with an above-average hit tool and speed but below average power. He’s a versatile defender who can capably play any of shortstop, second base or third base.

Guardians Designate Seven Players For Assignment

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The Guardians announced Friday that they’ve designated outfielders Daniel Johnson and Harold Ramirez; righties Justin Garza and J.C. Mejia; and lefties Kyle Nelson, Alex Young and Scott Moss for assignment.

Cleveland also added a whopping 10 players to the 40-man roster, headlined by top prospects Tyler Freeman and George Valera. Also added to the 40-man roster are Brayan Rocchio, Richie Palacios, Steven Kwan, Jose Tena, Cody Morris, Bryan Lavastida, Konnor Pilkington and Jhonkensy Noel.

Finally, the Guardians have also acquired right-hander Tobias Myers from the Rays in exchange for minor league infielder Junior Caminero, tweets FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen. Myers will also be added to the 40-man roster.

Johnson and Ramirez have been part of a revolving door in an uncertain Cleveland outfield in recent seasons. Neither has hit well enough to lock down a permanent roster spot, although Ramirez did start more than half the team’s games in 2021. Ramirez would have the right to elect minor league free agency if he clears waivers.

Mejia logged significant action as a depth starter this year but struggled. Garza, Nelson and Young saw some bullpen work, while Moss has yet to make it to the major leagues.

The massive turnover highlights the high minors depth Cleveland has stockpiled in recent seasons. The selection of ten prospects is highly atypical, but it’s a testament to the Guardians’ scouting and development staffs that they’ve managed to accumulate so much talent they’re afraid other teams might jump on. That’s particularly true on the position player side, with much of this group being hitters with advanced bat-to-ball skills who could factor onto the big league roster in relatively short order.

Freeman, Valera and Rocchio might be the most notable. All three appeared on FanGraphs’ Top 100 list entering the 2021 season. They’ve all topped out at Double-A Akron, where each posted above-average offensive performances despite being 22 years old or younger. Valera plays center field, while Freeman and Rocchio are middle infielders. Palacios is another infielder with great high minors numbers, while Lavastida is regarded as one of the better catching prospects in the minors.

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