Jeff Passan offers bittersweet Guardians insight in latest trade rumor roundup

The calendar turned to June over the weekend, which means we’ve officially reached trade deadline season. 

While there were some rumors, tidbits and deals that happened over the first two months of the season (looking at you, Patrick Bailey), the start of June always signifies the start of MLB’s silly season. 

That silly season received a huge boost earlier today when ESPN’s Jeff Passan released his first trade rumor roundup of the season, where he wrote what he’s hearing about what each team is potentially planning on doing (or not doing) ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline. 

Passan’s entry about the Guardians featured some interesting insight, as he included them in the “Could Acquire, But…” category, which indicates that they could weave the line between buying and selling at this year’s deadline. 

And his buzz about them signified that line weaving, as he wrote they could unload Rhys Hoskins while also highlighting Rockies outfielder Mickey Moniak as a player they could go after should they choose to buy. 

The Guardians could go in a variety of directions at the trade deadline

Part of the reason the Guardians were included in such a malleable category is because of how the team has operated in recent years. While they’ve added talent at the deadline (Lane Thomas in 2024), they’ve also made some big subtractions at the deadline, with the biggest being Shane Bieber at last year’s deadline. 

Hoskins stands out as one of the few players the Guardians could subtract given he’s on a one-year deal, isn’t part of the long-term core and also is currently standing in the way of first base prospect Ralphy Velazquez. 

But that still doesn’t mean that trading him would be a no-brainer. He’s up to his usual “three true outcomes antics”, as he has a .763 OPS despite having a batting average of just .203. 

While he and Kyle Manzardo have underwhelmed a bit in their first-base platoon, he’s still a quality player. But he’s on a cheap $1.5 million deal and likely won’t be back next season, so the Guardians could still decide to deal him and recoup some value from his contract while freeing up some space for Velazquez. 

The flip side of Passan’s rumors was highlighting Moniak as a potential trade fit, which is a no-brainer. 

Moniak is making just $4 million this season and posted a .280/.335/.607 slashline with 12 home runs and 28 RBI in 43 games with the Rockies prior to going on the injured list with right ankle tendinitis. 

A former first-round pick, the right-handed hitting Moniak has played well since joining the Rockies last March and would be a great fit in Cleveland's outfield.

Moniak would be an upgrade over Stuart Fairchild (who is currently serving as the Guardians’ right-handed hitting fourth outfielder), and is also under control for the next two seasons via arbitration. 

His defensive numbers took a hit last season (-8 Outs Above Average) in his first year roaming Coors Field's expansive outfield, but they were better this season (0 Outs Above Average). 

The Guardians would also be able to surround him with enough quality defenders that those limitations wouldn’t matter as much. 

Cleveland has been the toast of baseball this year thanks to their fantastic record, but their M.O. in recent years has been to stay the course and make moves around the margins. We’ll have to see if the Guardians follow that trend this season.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow