The former fan favorite could be a difference maker at the deadline.
The Cleveland Guardians decided to cut ties with Josh Naylor during the offseason in a deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks. While the Guardians could use Naylor right now, considering he's still one of the better-hitting first basemen in Major League Baseball, it's very possible that he could be on the move once again.
Some believe that the Diamondbacks will be sellers, as they haven't played well due to the mounting injuries they've dealt with. For Naylor, however, he’s still hitting .294 with 11 home runs and 58 RBIs.
Plugging him onto a contending team would be a wise decision, and Sportsnaut recently predicted that to be the case. They predicted Naylor would be traded to the Seattle Mariners at the deadline.
“A sweep over the Detroit Tigers heading into the All-Star Break provided the Seattle Mariners with some much-needed momentum. It should also be enough of a push for president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto to be an aggressive buyer at the MLB trade deadline. At the summer break, Mariners first basemen ranked 18th in OPS (.703). Diamondbacks first baseman Josh Naylor is on an expiring contract, reducing the acquisition cost for Seattle,” they wrote.
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The Mariners arguably have the best pitching staff in Major League Baseball when everything is going their way, but it's also tough to ignore their offensive flaws at times.
If the Mariners are looking to go all in at the deadline, adding a competent first baseman has to be in their plans, and Naylor would be exactly that.
Perhaps better than anything for the Mariners is the fact that Naylor hits free agency at the end of the campaign. If things don't work out, they could allow him to walk and not have to worry about any money being on their books.
Category: Baseball
