On Monday afternoon, the Cleveland Guardians traded their lone healthy veteran starter to the Tampa Bay Rays. Aaron Civale has had a good season thus far for Cleveland, and a tremendous July that saw him go 3-0 with a 1.45 ERA over 37.1 innings pitched. The Rays needed a starting pitcher to try and keep pace with the hot Baltimore Orioles after suffering injuries to their current rotation. In the trade, the Guardians received Kyle Manzardo, baseball’s #37 ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline. What is the impact of the Cleveland Guardians trading Aaron Civale the rest of the season?
The month of July has been hot, but Aaron Civale has been hotter.#ForTheLand pic.twitter.com/rouPKHqvvg
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) July 30, 2023
Entering play on Monday, the Guardians sat 0.5 games back of the Minnesota Twins in the abysmal AL Central. Trading away a veteran starter is an odd move for a team contending for the division title. At least, that may how it appears to those who don’t follow the team closely. The truth is the Guardians are an extremely flawed team. They rank near the bottom of the league in power, and have been very inconsistent offensively for the last two seasons. Civale has been great this year, but he has also spent time on the IL. The IL is no stranger to Civale. Civale is in his fifth season, and his career high for starts is 21 back in 2021 where he pitched his most innings at 124.1. Cleveland took advantage of a player’s stock never being higher while trying to prepare for the immediate future.
Kyle Manzardo is a left-handed first baseman with what scouts consider an above-average hit tool with potential for above-average power. He is currently on the minor league IL due to a shoulder strain, but Guardians General Manager Chris Antonetti has already come out saying he will be the team’s starting first baseman in 2024. That statement in itself is eye opening for the remainder of this season along with next year.
The @CleGuardians have acquired Kyle Manzardo (MLB's No. 37 overall prospect) from the Rays in exchange for Aaron Civale, per @Feinsand.
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 31, 2023
Manzardo was No. 4 on Tampa Bay's Top 30: https://t.co/OsFUUxoHnZ pic.twitter.com/Uuj7OJIU1i
Future Outlook
Josh Naylor is the team’s current first baseman, and he is in the midst of a breakout season. He is under team control through 2025. Naylor has experience in the outfield, so it is possible he could be moved there to provide some much needed pop to a position that has been lacking for Cleveland for what feels like decades. Designated Hitter is another possibility for Naylor, and provides an option for both Naylor and Manzardo to alternate days at first and days at DH. That brings us to Josh Bell.
Josh Bell was the team’s prized free agent signing this past offseason. He has not lived up to the hopes of the fans or the front office. Bell also he has a player option for 2024 that he will likely pick up. Bell has occupied the DH spot for most of the year. It is likely Cleveland will have to try and trade him in the offseason (if he is not moved before Tuesday’s 6:00 pm deadline).
What About 2023?
So where does this leave the team for the remainder of the season? The Guardians are very much in a division race with a team that has their own issues. There is no denying that losing Civale makes this team weaker today. The team added Noah Syndergaard last week when they sent Amed Rosario to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Syndergaard will hopefully likely take Civale’s spot in the rotation, but the team can’t expect similar results. It is possible the organization believes they can hold on for the next month or so while they wait for reinforcements. Triston McKenzie and Shane Bieber are hopeful to rejoin the rotation sometime in September. Adding two Cy Young caliber pitchers to the rotation would be huge for the team. But that is a tough dream to sell to fans right now.
This was ultimately a move that was made with eyes on 2024 and beyond. It is unlikely that Manzardo will contribute to the 2023 Guardians. The impact of the Cleveland Guardians trading Aaron Civale will not be able to be fully judged for a few years. However, without an additional move, it does not appear this team will break the longest active World Series drought.
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