Guardians second-half storylines: Trades, prospects and José Ramírez

New York Times

16-07-2025

CLEVELAND — Remember Cody Bolton?
No? He made a two-inning appearance for the Cleveland Guardians in late April, a few weeks after the club claimed him off waivers from the Seattle Mariners.
It's easy to forget certain names and faces during an unrelenting marathon of a baseball season.
Late last season, as Guardians manager Stephen Vogt was reflecting on the accomplishment of a division title, he noted how many players contributed throughout the journey. He even mentioned pitcher Wes Parsons. Go ahead, look it up. Yep, Parsons tossed four scoreless innings for the Guardians in April 2024. Then he disappeared. No one would blame you if it slipped your mind. That's the nature of a 162-game race.
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The All-Star break grants everyone — well, aside from the All-Stars — a chance to catch their breath, to ruminate on the first half and to ponder what's to come.
This is the week to pause and to recall that Dom Nuñez spent a week on Cleveland's roster, or that Will Wilson pitched two innings, or that Triston McKenzie broke camp as a member of the big-league bullpen.
As for what's next, well, here are three storylines to monitor in the second half:
Oh, the irony of Kyle Manzardo's slugging a key three-run homer off Aaron Civale in the Guardians' final game before the break. Cleveland swapped out Civale for Manzardo at the trade deadline in 2023, a season reminiscent of the 2025 season. They dealt Civale at his peak for a consensus Top 100 prospect. Civale could be traded again this month; he's already been traded twice since the Guardians traded him.
In 2023, they hemmed and hawed about whether to buy or sell or stand pat. They were hovering around the .500 mark, and they feared a daunting second-half schedule. Ultimately, they traded Civale, Josh Bell and Amed Rosario in a series of moves that upset many in the clubhouse and preceded a late-summer slumber.
Here they are again in a similar scenario. The Guardians might be one of the more fascinating teams to follow over the next two weeks.
As they bid to reassert themselves in the wild-card race, they encounter perhaps the softest stretch of their season schedule. They took three of four against the Chicago White Sox last weekend, and now they'll host the Athletics and Baltimore Orioles, play the Kansas City Royals in Kansas City and then welcome the Colorado Rockies to Progressive Field before the July 31 trade deadline.
Many teams are trying to crack Cleveland's code and gain a better sense of its trade deadline motivations. They might have to wait. It would be much clearer if the club didn't rebound from a 10-game skid with a 6-1 trip through Houston and Chicago. The Guardians have Shane Bieber on the mend (which could come in handy with Luis Ortiz's future in jeopardy, another storyline to monitor). They have Chase DeLauter and C.J. Kayfus on the cusp. They believe there's more output for Manzardo, Lane Thomas and Nolan Jones to supply. They also stumbled through an inconsistent first half with a rancid offense.
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Most of all, teams want to know whether they can pry away closer Emmanuel Clase or left fielder Steven Kwan. That seems doubtful, especially Kwan. The Guardians could seek a taker for impending free agents such as Carlos Santana or Thomas. They could also seek upgrades in the outfield, middle infield or bullpen. They're in a strange spot, where it might not make sense to push hard in either direction. There's a case to be made for buying and selling. There's a scenario in which they do neither. How they fare coming out of the break might factor into the equation.
So much conversation has surrounded DeLauter, his health and his extended stay in Columbus, but there are plenty of other prospects to keep tabs on the rest of the summer.
If the Guardians move Santana at the deadline, that would clear a spot for Kayfus, who has earned a look. The team would prefer him at first base instead of promoting him to try to handle right field, where he's been a work in progress.
This has turned into something of a lost season for Juan Brito because of injuries, but there's still hope he can return from a hamstring strain, knock rust off at Triple A and then get a taste of the majors before the end of the season. Travis Bazzana, last year's No. 1 pick, is working back into game shape in Arizona after missing nearly two months with an oblique strain. Can he play his way up to Triple A before the end of the year?
Will Parker Messick earn a start or two to get familiar with a big-league routine? The Guardians would love an opportunity to call upon him later this season for a doubleheader, the way they welcomed Doug Nikhazy to the majors in April. Will catcher Cooper Ingle force his way to Triple A? It's a long shot, but is there a way for him to snag a September call-up so he can shadow Austin Hedges and spend time with a coaching staff full of former catchers, as Bo Naylor did in 2022?
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Do we agree Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh are the clear-cut favorites to finish first and second in the AL MVP race? OK, cool. How about third place?
Ramírez emerged as an everyday player in 2016, and here are his MVP finishes each year since: 17th, third, third, none, second, sixth, fourth, 10th, fifth.
That's seven top-10 finishes in the last eight years.
It's six top-six finishes in the last eight years.
It's three top-three finishes in the last eight years.
Can he add to each of those totals in 2025?
Here's his primary competition:
Even as he speeds toward his 33rd birthday in September, Ramírez is on pace for a career-high 50 stolen bases. He's flirting with a .300 average. He's on pace for 30 homers. He rarely strikes out or gets nabbed trying to steal. He has rebounded from a rough start to the year defensively. In other words, he's up to his usual tricks.
In all likelihood, he'll find himself somewhere in the middle of most voters' ballots, as he always does.