With the Cleveland Guardians trading for a new catcher, Patrick Bailey, where does that leave Bo Naylor?
Stephen Vogt said that Friday night was one of the hardest that he’s had since taking over as the Cleveland Guardians manager two and a half years ago.
Cleveland’s skipper was responsible for telling Bo Naylor that the Guardians were closing in on a trade for Patrick Bailey, effectively leaving Naylor without a role on the roster. Once the deal was made official, Cleveland optioned Naylor to Triple-A Columbus.
With the Guardians already having three catchers at the Major League level, and the position group just as crowded in Columbus, what’s next for Naylor?
Naylor’s defense has always been average to solid, but it’s been his offense that has really been struggling since the start of the year. Through the first quarter of the 2026 campaign, Naylor owns a .143/.200/.238 slashline with a strikeout rate of 23.3 percent.
With that in mind, what's next for the former top prospect?
Apr 18, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor (23) hits a home run during the eighth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn ImagesBo won’t be heading south down I-71 to the state’s capital. Instead, he’ll be hopping on a plane to the desert to Cleveland’s Arizona Complex to get work in more of a low-leverage environment.
From there, the plan will be for him to work with the coaches and resources at the Complex before transitioning back to Columbus and the Minor Leagues.
Is there a path for Naylor to actually get back to being on Cleveland’s Major League roster? The answer is, yes, for now, but it’s not a smooth one.
As mentioned, the Guardians have a ton of organizational depth at catcher. Obviously, at the Big League level, that consists of Bailey, Austin Hedges, and Davdi Fry. Then, at Triple-A, the Guardians have No. 5-ranked prospect Cooper Ingle, Kody Huff, and Dom Nunez.
Cleveland still believes that Bo has the ability to get back to being more of the player he’s been in the back half of the last two seasons, but there’s a long road to get there, and plenty of hurdles to jump.
Chris Antonetti said, “I've been encouraged by the series of conversations we've had that, you know, talking to him this morning, that his mindset is putting in the work to try to get back to being the player. We all know he's capable of becoming him."
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