Guardians' Josh Naylor: Seeing regular work in spring
Rotowire
Naylor has gone 6-for-26 (.231) through 10 Cactus League games.
Naylor opted out of representing Canada at the World Baseball Classic to avoid aggravating his ankle, but he's seen plenty of playing time in spring training. The 25-year-old established himself with a .256/.319/.452 slash line, 20 home runs, 79 RBI, 47 runs scored and six stolen bases over 122 games last season. He's the Guardians' top first baseman this season, though Naylor and Josh Bell will likely share the duties at first base and designated hitter for much of the campaign.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: No WBC to protect ankle
Rotowire
Naylor has chosen not to play for Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic so as to not risk aggravating his surgically repaired right ankle, Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal reports.
Naylor had surgery on the ankle back in 2021 and aggravated it during that postseason. He also dealt with some lingering soreness in the ankle during the 2022 campaign. While the 25-year-old feels healthy now and is having a normal offseason, he's "still trying to make sure I'm fully recovered for this season" and has decided playing in the WBC is too risky. Naylor posted career highs with 20 home runs and a .771 OPS last season.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Inks one-year deal
Rotowire
Naylor signed a one-year, $3.35 million contract with the Guardians on Friday to avoid arbitration, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
Naylor popped a career-high 20 home runs and posted a .771 OPS in 2022 to earn a raise. He can't hit lefties at all and figures to be on the bench against them most days in 2023, but Naylor does enough damage versus righties to produce mixed-league value in deeper leagues.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Three-RBI day
Rotowire
Naylor went 2-for-4 with a double, three RBI and one run scored in Wednesday's win over the Royals.
Naylor provided a big lift for Cleveland, driving in three of the Guardians' nine runs on the day. Two of those RBI came via a two-run double in the first inning to put the Guardians up 2-1, and the third came via an RBI single in the eighth. Naylor had his ups and downs this season, but his season-long line held up at a respectable .256/.319/.452 over 498 plate appearances.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Sits against lefty
Rotowire
Naylor is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Royals.
Naylor has only started against a lefty once in the last three weeks, and he heads to the bench here with southpaw Daniel Lynch on the mound for Kansas City. Owen Miller gets the start at first base, hitting sixth.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Resting Monday
Rotowire
Naylor is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Royals.
After starting the past three games while going 3-for-11 with a home run and three RBI, Naylor will take a seat Monday. The Guardians are likely just building in some extra rest for Naylor in advance of the postseason, when he's expected to be a mainstay in the Cleveland lineup.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Clubs homer in win
Rotowire
Naylor went 2-for-3 with a three-run home run in Sunday's 7-5 win over the Royals.
Naylor went yard in the second inning, and his homer gave the Guardians enough offense to withstand the Royals' pushback over the rest of the contest. Over his last eight games, Naylor's gone 6-for-30 (.200) with a homer, four RBI, three doubles and three runs scored. The 25-year-old's small slump has dropped his slash line to .254/.316/.449 with 20 long balls, 76 RBI, 46 runs scored, six stolen bases and 27 doubles in 121 games overall, and he's still seeing the majority of playing time at first base.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Sits against southpaw
Rotowire
Naylor isn't in the lineup Thursday against the Rays.
Naylor will head to the bench for the second time in the last four games with left-hander Jeffrey Springs starting for Tampa Bay. Gabriel Arias is taking over at first base and batting seventh.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Out against lefty
Rotowire
Naylor is not in Sunday's lineup against the Rangers.
He will head to the bench with southpaw Cole Ragans toeing the rubber for Texas. Naylor is hitting .364 with two home runs and a stolen base over his last six games.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Posts sixth steal
Rotowire
Naylor went 1-for-3 with a double, a walk, an RBI, a stolen base and a run scored in Friday's 6-3 win over the Rangers.
Naylor has a five-game hitting streak, during which he's gone 8-for-18 with two home runs, three doubles and seven RBI. The first baseman is up to six steals this year while slashing .261/.323/.457 with 19 homers, 73 RBI and 44 runs scored through 115 contests.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Blasts two-run homer
Rotowire
Naylor went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and an additional run scored in Wednesday's 8-2 victory over the White Sox.
Naylor homered off righty reliever Jose Ruiz with one out in the seventh to build the Guardians' lead to 8-1. The first baseman has struggled to find hits in his last 10 games, turning in a .189 average over 37 at-bats; however, the 25-year-old has two home runs, six RBI and six walks during that same span.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Out of lineup vs. lefty
Rotowire
Naylor is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Angels.
The lefty-hitting Naylor will take a seat for the second time in the series with the Angels bringing another southpaw (Patrick Sandoval) to the hill. Tyler Freeman will crack the lineup in the series finale while Naylor takes a seat.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Sits versus lefty
Rotowire
Naylor is on the bench Monday against the Angels.
It appears to be a regular day off for Naylor as the Guardians face lefty Reid Detmers. Jose Ramirez is the designated hitter in place of Naylor, who has slashed .297/.366/.486 with a home run, four doubles and five RBI since the beginning of September.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Knocks 20th double
Rotowire
Naylor went 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI and two runs scored in Friday's 7-6 win over the Twins.
Naylor delivered an RBI single to open the scoring in the first inning. He also scored on both of Oscar Gonzalez's home runs in the contest. Through seven games in September, Naylor has hit .310 (9-for-29) with three extra-base hits, three RBI and three runs scored. The 25-year-old's bouncing back from a cold August, and he's up to a .265/.318/.457 slash line with 17 homers, 20 doubles, five stolen bases, 64 RBI and 38 runs scored through 101 games this year.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Rare day off Tuesday
Rotowire
Naylor is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Royals.
Naylor had started 16 straight games, hitting .200/.279/.317 with two home runs and two steals in 60 at-bats over that span. Owen Miller will start at first base and bat sixth.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Swats homer in win
Rotowire
Naylor went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Monday's 6-5 extra-inning win over the Royals.
Naylor went yard in the sixth inning off of Royals starter Brady Singer to put the Guardians up 3-2. Through five games in September, Naylor has found a little consistency, going 5-for-20 (.250) with a homer, a double and two RBI. The 25-year-old continues to command a presence in the heart of the lineup with a .260/.315/.454 slash line, 17 long balls, 63 RBI, 36 runs scored and five stolen bases through 99 contests.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Provides go-ahead homer
Rotowire
Naylor went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's 5-1 win over the Orioles.
Naylor's fourth-inning blast put the Guardians ahead for good. The 25-year-old has had some struggles at the plate lately -- this homer was his first extra-base hit since Aug. 13. In his last 12 games, he's gone just 7-for-39 (.179), though the slump has yet to cost him his near-everyday role. Naylor is slashing .263/.315/.459 with 16 long balls, 61 RBI, 35 runs scored and five stolen bases through 93 contests this year.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Records fifth steal
Rotowire
Naylor went 1-for-5 with a stolen base and a run scored in Wednesday's 7-0 win over the Padres.
Naylor has gone eight games without an extra-base hit, going 6-for-25 (.240) with two steals, one RBI and a run in that span. The 25-year-old's slump has lowered his season slash line to .270/.325/.467 with 15 home runs, 57 RBI, 34 runs scored and five steals through 88 contests. Despite the poor hitting lately, he's retained a near-everyday role at first base over Owen Miller when healthy.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Produces steal in win
Rotowire
Naylor went 1-for-2 with a stolen base, a walk and a hit by pitch in Friday's 5-2 win over the White Sox.
Naylor worked the front end of a double steal with Andres Gimenez in the seventh inning as the Guardians tried to extend a rally. The theft is a good sign Naylor is healthy after he missed time earlier this week with an ankle injury. The 25-year-old is up to four steals this season while adding a solid .275/.331/.480 slash line, 15 home runs, 57 RBI and 33 runs scored through 338 plate appearances.
... See More... See Less
Guardians' Josh Naylor: Back in action Wednesday
Rotowire
Naylor (ankle) is starting Wednesday against the Tigers.
Naylor sustained an ankle injury during the second game of Monday's doubleheader and wasn't in Tuesday's lineup, but he went 0-for-1 as a pinch hitter. The 25-year-old will serve as the designated hitter and bat fifth Wednesday.
