One of Canada’s top sluggers is headed to Arizona.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Cleveland Guardians are finalizing a trade that would send Mississauga, Ont.’s Josh Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for right-handed pitcher Slade Cecconi and competitive balance Round B pick.
The 27-year-old first baseman has spent the past four-and-a-half seasons in Cleveland, developing into a middle-of-the-order force.
In 2024, Naylor earned his first All-Star Game nomination in a year that saw him post a .776 OPS while smashing 31 home runs and driving in 108 runs.
Naylor is entering his final year of team control and is projected to make $12 million, per MLB Trade Rumors.
The five-foot-11 Canadian has really hit his stride at the big-league level over the past three years, totalling 68 homers, 284 RBIs, 86 doubles and a .795 OPS.
His efforts earned him the 2023 Tip O’Neill Award as the “Canadian player judged to have excelled in individual achievement and team contribution while adhering to baseball’s highest ideals.”
Originally selected in the first round of the 2015 draft by the Miami Marlins, this is the third time Naylor will switch teams via trade. He was shipped from Miami to the San Diego Padres in 2016 and then moved to Cleveland in 2020.
Alongside his brother Bo Naylor and relievers Cade Smith and Erik Sabrowski, Josh and his teammates born north of the border made the Guardians the most-Canadian MLB post-season team in history in 2024.
Cecconi, 25, made his MLB debut with the Diamondbacks in 2023 and has since logged 104.0 innings with a 6.06 ERA. He has spent time as a starter and reliever in Arizona.
The six-foot-four Miami alum was drafted as a compensation selection in — the 33rd-overall pick — in the 2020 draft.
