Brewers add catcher Bo Naylor in 4-player trade with Guardians

ANAHEIM -- While continuing to pursue trades for difference-makers, the Brewers swung a deal with the Guardians on Saturday in the interest of organizational depth.

The Brewers picked up catcher Bo Naylor and right-handed reliever Codi Heuer in exchange for outfielder Blake Perkins and reliever Craig Yoho, assigning both Naylor and Heuer to Triple-A Nashville.

“We felt like Naylor is somebody we’ve been interested in for a while, and at this time of year, you want to protect your downside,” said Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold, who also added catching depth at last year’s Deadline with a deal for veteran backstop Danny Jansen. “It adds another layer of depth for us, which I think is really important -- especially at this time of year.”

TRADE DETAILS
Brewers get: C Bo Naylor and RHP Codi HeuerGuardians get: OF Blake Perkins and RHP Craig Yoho

That’s particularly the case now because the organization’s top catching prospect, Jefferson Quero (Brewers No. 12 prospect per MLB Pipeline) has been limited to DH duties since June 26 by a right biceps injury that will prevent him from catching for another 10 days or so. Quero’s rise has been slowed by a series of injuries starting with a major right shoulder surgery at the start of 2024, and has not yet regained his premium throwing ability.

“Catching is so hard to acquire,” Arnold said. “Naylor has had some real success in the big leagues on good teams. We think he has some good ingredients and is still young. It’s a nice fit for us.”

Perkins, a switch-hitting former Gold Glove Award finalist who has struggled mightily to produce offensively in a limited role over the past two seasons, was expendable because outfielder Brandon Lockridge was activated from the 60-day injured list for Saturday’s game against the Angels. And Yoho, who hasn’t missed bats with his signature changeup the way the Brewers envisioned when he rose through the Minor League system to be one of MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 Milwaukee prospects, was about to be squeezed out by Kyle Harrison’s impending return from the injured list on Wednesday against the Pirates, and perhaps lefty reliever Jared Koenig after that. The Brewers sent Koenig to their Arizona complex two weeks ago to get him on track.

In the short term, the Brewers recalled righty reliever Garrett Stallings on Saturday. He was just optioned back to the Minors days ago, but the rules allow for his quick return if he’s replacing a player who was traded, the source said.

So rather than option down Perkins and eventually Yoho, the Brewers opted to use that depth to access a player they have liked for a while. Naylor is 26, has Minor League options remaining and is still shy of arbitration eligibility, meaning he has years of club control ahead of him. That could come into play in the future as Brewers All-Star catcher William Contreras creeps toward free agency.

Naylor was Cleveland’s first-round Draft pick in 2018 and has appeared in the Majors in each of the last five seasons, making more than 100 starts behind the plate in each of 2024 and ‘25. But along the way he’s slashed a .199/.279/.372 in the Major Leagues, and he was demoted to the Minor Leagues in May after the Guardians traded for Giants catcher Patrick Bailey.

“It’s so hard,” said Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti. “As I told Bo last night, there's not a better human being, better teammate, better worker, or anyone who cares more than Bo. I continue to believe that he is going to be a good Major League player, and we saw that at different points in time.

“He's always been invested in his teammates and the pitching staff, an incredible leader. But we weren't able to help him be as consistent offensively as we think he can be. We scratched our heads a lot trying to figure out, ‘How do we do that? How do we support Bo better?’ But in the end, we just couldn't help him unlock that consistency. I am hopeful. As I told him yesterday, I think he's going to a great organization. Hopefully, Milwaukee can partner with him, give him a fresh set of eyes, some new voices. I'm hoping he can kind of get his career going in the direction that he wants and get back to being the Major League catcher that we all think he's capable of being.”

Said Murphy: “I talked to [Guardians manager] Stephen Vogt today. We had a great conversation and he loves the kid.”

Heuer has pitched for five Major League teams since 2020 including eight appearances for the Guardians this season. He’s spent most of this season at Triple-A Columbus, where he had a 3.46 ERA and six saves in 26 appearances. He came into this season with just over four years of Major League service time and will be arbitration-eligible after this season.

It marked the end of the line with Milwaukee for Yoho, a 26-year-old, 2023 eighth-round Draft pick whose Bugs Bunny change-up drew comparisons to former Brewers closer Devin Williams. Yoho had a 3.15 ERA in 15 appearances for the Brewers this season, but was up and down between the Majors and Minors three times and didn’t show the consistent command necessary to move into higher-leverage work.

“He definitely has a good arm and great ingredients, and an excellent changeup,” Arnold said. “He would show flashes at times, and then wasn’t always as consistent as he needed to be to pitch in high leverage for us. What a great kid. I’m certainly pulling for him in the future.”