Full details of Josh Naylor trade now finalized after Guardians draft impressive lefty

Eight months ago, the Cleveland Guardians made the hard decision to trade Josh Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Slade Cecconi and a Competitive Balance Round B draft pick. While the trade made sense from a baseball standpoint, given he was entering his final year of arbitration and was standing in the way of Kyle Manzardo at first base, his departure still angered Guardians fans, given what he meant to the fan base. 

And while those wounds may still be there, the trade is looking more and more like a win for the Guardians, especially after Cleveland’s strong draft today. 

Full details of Josh Naylor trade now finalized after Guardians' latest draft pick

On Sunday, the Guardians finally got to see the fruits of their labor from the trade by selecting left-hander Will Hynes with that pick. Hynes, a Canadian lefty who just turned 18 and is committed to Wake Forest, is slider-forward. He's reached 95 with his fastball, and has a potential plus slider in his arsenal with advanced touch and feel. "Obviously, he's not going to make it to Wake Forest," according to MLB Network's post-selection panel.

He’ll join a Guardians organization that’s on the upswing after a rough start to the month. The Guardians have now won six of their last seven games since losing 10 in a row, and enter the All-Star Break in the thick of the American League postseason picture. 

Cecconi has been a big reason for that, as he currently boasts a 3.44 ERA across his 10 starts and tossed seven superb innings against the Astros his last time out along with recording a career-high nine strikeouts.

He’s under team control for six seasons, boasts a solid five-pitch and is looking more like the quintessential starting pitcher you need to have in today’s MLB. He may never be a frontline ace, but he could be a solid No. 2 or No. 3 option, which can be just as important. 

The Guardians’ trade of Naylor also looks better by the day. While he’s hitting .295 with 11 home runs and 58 RBI this year, he could end up elsewhere after the trade deadline due to Arizona’s swoon and is set to earn a big payday in free agency. 

The writing had been on the wall in Cleveland for Naylor ever since the team acquired Kyle Manzardo from the Rays in 2023, and Manzardo has done well in his first year as the team’s main first base option, even if his usage has been a bit puzzling.

And all that sets up the addition of Hynes. The Guardians farm system has been on the rise as of late thanks to some strong drafting, and their selection of the intriguing lefty adds to that. 

This trade also helped them add even more to that system since they also had the No. 66 pick in the Competitive Balance Round B, where they picked outfielder Aaron Walton out of Arizona.

The Guardians are one of MLB's best at building a winning team through the minor leagues, and it's trade like this that have helped them earn that reputation.