3 months agoAccording to Jeff Passan of ESPN, the Arizona Diamondbacks are acquiring first baseman
Josh Naylor from the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for right-handed pitcher
Slade Cecconi and a competitive balance Round B draft pick. Naylor has spent the past four seasons with Cleveland after making his major league debut in San Diego. Last summer, the 27-year-old posted a .243/.320/.456 slash line with 31 home runs, 27 doubles, and 108 RBI. He also swiped six bags. Under the hood, he generated an above average .335 xwOBA, and a .443 xSLG. In addition, he also posted a solid 16.6% K rate. Naylor has been a great RBI producer as he has tallied at least 97 RBI in each of the past two seasons. With
Christian Walker now playing in Houston, fantasy managers should expect Naylor to see the vast majority of starts at first base in the desert. He should see similar RBI production batting behind
Corbin Carroll and
Ketel Marte. Cecconi has held a career 6.06 ERA across 104 major league innings and will likely compete for a spot on the Opening Day Roster.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: Jeff Passan
4 months agoThe Athletic's Ken Rosenthal writes that the Cleveland Guardians are open to trade offers for first baseman
Josh Naylor and outfielder
Lane Thomas, both of whom are entering their walk years. Naylor is projected to earn $12 million in salary arbitration, while Thomas is at $8.3 million. Cleveland has concerns in their outfield, but they just landed Thomas in a midseason trade in 2024. Naylor, on the other hand, has emerged as one of the team's most valuable position players while also being a leader in the clubhouse. If Naylor were dealt,
Kyle Manzardo would be the obvious replacement for Naylor at first base in Cleveland. The small-market organization has already lost left-hander
Matthew Boyd to free agency, and right-handers
Shane Bieber and
Alex Cobb could be next. Naylor had a career year for the Guards in 2024, but his struggles against left-handed pitching remains an issue.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Ken Rosenthal
6 months agoCleveland Guardians first baseman
Josh Naylor blasted a pair of solo home runs off of Twins starter
Bailey Ober during a 2-for-4 day at the plate in Wednesday's 5-4 win over Minnesota. The left-handed hitter recorded two RBI and scored three times in the contest, bringing his season line to .245-31-105-81-6. This season marks the first time the 27-year-old has surpassed the 30-homer and 100 RBI threshold in his career. The former first-round draft pick will look to keep rolling Thursday against the Twins'
Simeon Woods Richardson who he is 2-for-4 off of in his career.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
7 months agoCleveland Guardians first baseman
Josh Naylor (back) returns to the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. This is good news after Naylor was forced to exit early during Tuesday's game due to back spasms. As a result, Naylor sat out on Wednesday and the team had an off day on Thursday. Naylor will bat cleanup and cover first base versus right-hander
Landon Knack on Friday. Naylor has been on fire at the plate with nine hits and six RBI in his last five games. Fantasy managers should make sure to get Naylor back in their lineups ahead of first pitch.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
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