Looking at the Guardians' trade of Yan Gomes to the Nationals eight years later

As we continue to look back and see how Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff have fared in their trades over the past decade, one of the first trades they made that signeled the start of the team's new era was when they dealt Yan Gomes to the Nationals after the 2018 season.

Here's a look at how that trade has aged since.

Trade details:

Nationals receive: C Yan Gomes
Guardians receive: RHP Jefry Rodriguez, OF Daniel Johnson and INF Andruw Monastario

The Guardians decision to trade Yan Gomes ended up not amounting to much

Nationals

Lets start with the buyers, as the Nationals were looking to improve behind the plate and Gomes was the perfect fit since he was coming off an All-Star campaign.

Gomes finished his tenure in Cleveland with a .250/.296/.426 slashline in 609 games to go along with 83 home runs. His best season came in 2014 when he hit .278 with 21 home runs and 74 RBI en route to winning a Silver Slugger.

Gomes produced similar numbers during his time with the Nationals, slashing .250/.319/.424 with an OPS at .743 in 190 games. He was also behind the plate for the final out of Washington's win in Game 7 of the 2019 World Series.

The Nationals flipped him to the Athletics at the trade deadline in 2021, and he signed with the Cubs the following season.

His time with the Cubs came to an end midway through the 2024 season and he retired not long after.

Nationals' Grade: A+

The name of the game is to win the World Series, and that is what the Nationals did during Gomes’ first season in DC. 

The Nationals didn't give up much in return for Gomes, so they were able to acquire a vital piece of a World Series-winning team without worrying about how the other pieces in the deal were doing. It was a clear win.

Guardians 

The prize prospect returning to Cleveland was OF Daniel Johnson, who never really got a fair look for the Guardians. 

The speedy outfielder only appeared in 35 games across parts of 2020-21, where he slashed a measly .202/.245/.337.

The Guardians ended up trading him to the Mets for cash considerations in 2022.

Hohnson had short stints with the San Francisco Giants and Baltimore Orioles last season, and just signed a minor-league contract with the Miami Marlins for the 2026 season. 

RHP Jefry Rodriguez also had a short stint with Cleveland. The righty pitched in ten games for the Guardians in 2019, posting a 4.63 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 46.2 innings.

Rodriguez did not appear for the Guardians in the 2020 season, and was non-tendered following the shortened season.

The righty appeared for the Nationals again in 2021, but has not appeared in MLB since.

Monasterio has become the most accomplished player in this deal despite being the PTBNL.

Monasterio didn't do much during his three seasons in the Guardians' farm system, and he ended up signing with the Brewers as a minor league free agent in 2022.

He made his big league debut in 2023 and ended up slashing .250/.321/.351 in 219 games with the Brewers while working as a utility player.

Monasterio was traded to the Boston Red Sox last month in the Caleb Durbin trade. 

Guardians' Grade: C-

Although the Guardians failed to acquire any real value for Gomes, the deal still made since thanks to Eric Haase and Roberto Perez serving as options behind the plate. The deal made sense money-wise.

Still, this deal is closer to being an "F" than an "A", thanks to the lack of value they got in return for Gomes. But Gomes was in the later stages of his career, and the Guardians were able to move off him at the right time.