The Guardians made some bold moves ahead of Monday's Major League Baseball trade deadline, adding veteran bats and an All-Star pitcher to bolster their lineup and rotation as they seek a third consecutive AL Central title.
Cleveland has been above .500 for most of the season but is 6-10 since the All-Star break, tied for the third-worst record in the American League. The Guardians are three games behind the first-place White Sox in the American League Central Division and hold a one-game lead over Minnesota for the league's final wild card spot.
Ideastream Public Media sports commentator Terry Pluto said the front office's approach reflected a team that believes it still has a chance to win the division.
"They saw the Detroit Tigers traded their ace, Tarik Skubal, and they traded another one of their top pitchers, Casey Mize," Pluto said. "And I think the Guardians, from Paul Dolan, the owner, on down through Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff, the (general managers), said, 'Are we just gonna forfeit this division to the White Sox? Or are we gonna go make some moves to try to get some hitters here?' So they said, 'Let's be bold, but let's not trade our top prospects.'"
The first move of the day was acquiring outfielder Jo Adell from the Los Angeles Angels. Adell spent his entire career with the Angels after being selected 10th overall in the 2017 MLB Draft.
"Here's what you're gonna get with Adell,” Pluto said. “He's been a top prospect forever. He's a big guy. He hits a lot of home runs, and he strikes out. But right now he has 16 homers and 62 RBIs (runs batted in). And he's hitting over .300 with runners in scoring position."
Cleveland then acquired All-Star left-hander Foster Griffin from the Washington Nationals in exchange for four prospects. The 31-year-old Griffin, who spent three seasons pitching in Japan for the Yomiuri Giants before returning to the majors, is 12-3 with a 3.06 earned run average and 116 strikeouts. He is tied for fourth in the majors with 12 wins.
"Washington decided they're not going anywhere," Pluto said. "Griffin is going to be a free agent at the end of the season. They figured they were not gonna be able to keep him. So, they said, 'Let's see how many prospects we could get for him.'
The Nationals received left-handers Will Dion and Josh Hartle, outfielder Nick Mitchell and right-hander Kendeglys Virguez in the deal.
The Guardians also added first baseman Nathaniel Lowe from the Cincinnati Reds. Lowe, 31, is batting .266 with 12 home runs and 37 RBIs.
"He is a left-handed hitter who crushes right-handed pitching,” Pluto said. “And much like Foster, the pitcher from Washington, he's going to be a free agent at the end of the year."
The Guardians traded right-hander Alejandro Rivera to Cincinnati for Lowe. They also sent infielder Juan Brito to the Reds for cash.
Pluto believes the additions should improve an offense that has struggled most of the season. Cleveland ranks near the bottom of the majors offensively, entering Tuesday with a .231 team batting average, 446 runs scored and 109 home runs.
"So, if Jo Adell and Nathaniel Lowe even just kind of play right up to (their current level), you know, Adell keeps striking out but hits some home runs, and Lowe keeps hitting about .290 against the right-handed pitching, that's a big boost," Pluto said.
To make room on the roster, the Guardians optioned first baseman Kyle Manzardo and utility player David Fry to Triple-A Columbus.
"That also sent a message that's like, Fry and Manzardo were just having really disappointing seasons," Pluto said. "Oftentimes, the Guardians are patient, patient, patient. They said, 'No, we could send these guys to the minors, and maybe they could put themselves back together. In the meantime, we're gonna try two guys in Adell and Lowe who we think are gonna help us more right now.'"
Pluto said the moves also sent a message to the clubhouse.
"Like, 'Look, guys, we have a chance to win this division, and we brought you some help,' and I know Stephen Vogt has to be happy, the manager, because they've had the youngest team in the majors every single year," Pluto said. "Well, they've brought in guys now, some older hands, to kind of help the team along here."
Pluto said the team also had fans in mind.
"Right now, all you got to do is maybe beat out the White Sox and Twins, and if you don't try to do that, your fan base will be unhappy, and they should be,” Pluto said. “But they lost eight of their last 11 games, and they got to turn this thing around. And they can do it easily with just some help from the outside. So I'm upbeat on it. This is really cool. It was a lot of fun to write and talk about, too."
This past weekend, the Guardians traded catcher Bo Naylor and right-hander Codi Heuer to Milwaukee for right-hander Craig Yoho and outfielder Blake Perkins. Yoho will join Cleveland’s bullpen, while Perkins will play at Triple-A.
