Guardians strike trade with Angels and finally acquire righty bat fans have begged for

Earlier today, the Los Angeles Angels announced their intention as a clear seller by trading José Soriano to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Little did we know that would be precursor to a deal that could help the Guardians become true contender, as multiple insiders have reported the Guardians are acquiring Angels outfielder Jo Adell in exchange for minor league catcher Jacob Cozart.

Adell's not perfect, but he should provide the Guardians with a clear upgrade in a lineup that sorely lacking any kind of power.

Jo Adell will be a great fit with the Guardians

At face value, Adell seems like the antithesis of what the Guardians tend to go after in a player. He's hitting just .239, has an on-base percentage under .290 and has been worth -3 Outs Above Average.

But one thing he does have is power. Lots of power.

Adell's mashed 16 home runs this season, and has mashed 76 longballs since the start of the 2024. That's an obvious plus for a Guardians team that's been looking for outfield power since the dawn of time.

Guardians fans got a first-hand look at Adell's powers in May when he recorded an RBI double in the the series opener before robbing Angel Martínez of a home run the next day.

Ironically, Adell's inclusion on the roster could have a huge impact on Martínez, who has been Cleveland's primary right fielder this year when he's been healthy. That said, Martínez's on-base percentage is even worse (.260), and has gone just 2-for-23 since returning from the injured list.

Adell may have some clear flaws, but he's no worse than Martínez.

One of the biggest reasons the Guardians have have decided to pull the trigger on Adell is his drastic splits, as he has a .910 OPS against left-handed pitching this season along with having a .793 OPS against southpaws in his career.

Guardians hitters have combined for a wRC+ of 86 against southpaws this year (.222 batting average), so Adell is an obvious fix for that. Adell is also under team control next season, so he's not a pure rental.

His addition to the roster does mean the Guardians are going to need ride the waves that come with having Adell in your lineup. He has a career strikeout rate of 28.8%, and can be a bit of an adventure in the outfield (though he did make headlines earlier this year for robbing three home runs in a game against the Mariners).

But the Guardians' acquisition of Adell is going to cost them Cozart, who MLB Pipeline has ranked as the No. 18 prospect in Cleveland's system.

Cozart's been playing at Double-A this season with a .714 slashline, but he was a bit of an odd man out in the Guardians' catching picture due to the presence of Patrick Bailey, Austin Hedges and Cooper Ingle.

The Guardians dipped into their positional depth to add a player who fills an obvious need. Adell's not a perfect player, but he should provide the Guardians with the offense they desperately need.

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