Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies. The lefty slugger has started in 10 straight games with only five hits during that time. That being said, Naylor could use a day off to rest and recover before getting back in the lineup. In the meantime, Jhonkensy Noel will start at first base and bat fifth versus left-hander Christopher Sanchez. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups with Naylor sitting out prior to first pitch.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor will take the day off on Thursday in the series finale against the hosting Detroit Tigers and right-hander Jack Flaherty. David Fry will draw into the lineup at first base and will bat fifth against Flaherty. This will be Naylor's first day off since June 27. He's been a must-start in all fantasy lineups this year and is batting .294 (10-for-34) with two homers, two doubles, nine RBI, a stolen base and eight runs scored so far in nine games in the month of July. The 27-year-old left-handed slugger will head to the Midsummer Classic next week in Texas for the first time in his career. Naylor has already reached a career-high 22 home runs in 87 games in 2024 and has driven in 70 runs while adding four stolen bases for the first-place Guardians. Fry got off to an amazing start early on, but he's cooled off and has gone 7-for-32 (.219) since June 26.
Cleveland Guardians All-Star first baseman Josh Naylor exploded on offense Tuesday night, going 3-for-4 with a two-run home run, an RBI groundout, and an RBI single in a 9-8 extra-inning victory against the division-rival Detroit Tigers. Two days ago, Naylor learned that he was named to his first All-Star team, and he wasted no time showing us why Tuesday night. We are sitting here at the beginning of July, and Naylor already has two home runs more than his previous career-high of 20 homers and is only 27 RBI from his previous career-high of 97 RBI. Assuming he stays healthy, he will crush those numbers. The Guardians' turnaround on offense has been a total team effort, but Naylor has pulled his fair share of the weight. The only blemish on his season thus far is that his .247 batting average is well below the .308 batting average he produced in 2023. We doubt fantasy managers or the Guardians are complaining, though.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor has been heating up with the bat over the last few days. On Sunday, Naylor went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI in the loss to the Kansas City Royals. He was slow out of the gate, but Naylor has started to swing the bat better as of late. Naylor has four hits and three RBI over his last two games. The hope is that Naylor can keep this going into the All-Star break and during the second half of the season.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor is sitting out again on Wednesday against the hosting Baltimore Orioles. Naylor was also out of the starting lineup on Tuesday, but this time he'll take a seat against a right-handed pitcher in favor of rookie Jhonkensy Noel, who will be making his major-league debut against Orioles right-hander Grayson Rodriguez. There has been no word on a potential injury for Naylor, but fantasy managers may want to check back for more word on why the 27-year-old left-handed slugger is sitting out against a righty. Naylor has struggled against left-handed pitching this year, but overall he's been a force with 20 home runs, 58 RBI and 43 runs scored in his 274 at-bats while batting .241 (66-for-274). He's gone 19-for-74 (.257) with five homers, three doubles and 16 RBI in 19 games in June.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor will take a day off with a left-hander on the mound on Tuesday versus the hosting Baltimore Orioles. Gabriel Arias will take over at first base and will bat eighth for the Guardians against Orioles left-hander Cole Irvin. This will be Naylor's first day off since May 22. The former 12th overall pick by the Miami Marlins in 2015 has elite power and has already matched his previous career-high with 20 home runs while also driving in 58 runs in 73 games so far in 2024. Naylor has definitely struggled much more against lefties, hitting .207 (18-for-87) with only five of his 20 homers on the year. The right-handed hitting Arias will be a deep sleeper with limited upside in the eight-hole on Tuesday. He's gone just 28-for-130 (.215) on the year with just two homers and four stolen bases.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor continued his strong season on Sunday, going 3-for-5 with a homer, a double, two runs scored, and an RBI. Naylor became the fifth major leaguer this season to hit 20 dingers with his fourth-inning shot. The 27-year-old is enjoying a breakout season where he has found his power stroke. Although his batting average is lower than usual at .244, he has the aforementioned 20 homers to go along with 58 RBI and an .835 OPS. He is easily a top-ten first base option in fantasy and is a must-start player.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor had a huge night at the plate in Tuesday's 13-7 win over the Rockies. Naylor took advantage of the thin air, going 2-for-4 with a two-run home run, a three-run HR, and a walk. The 26-year-old has provided the power fantasy managers were expecting but not the batting average and is now slashing .234/.321/.510 with 15 HR and 40 RBI in 221 plate appearances. It is hard to complain about the average when Naylor has provided so many counting stats and it appears that he has gotten unlucky on balls in play, as he has hit the ball hard but has a .205 BABIP. All of this points to continued fantasy production with the chance for positive regression.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Friday's 10-4 win over the Angels. The home run was Naylor's 13th of the season, and with his career-high Barrel% of 11.6% he's on pace to eclipse his career-high home run mark of 20 set in 2022. The former first-round draft pick got off to a hot start this season, slashing .321/.387/.605 over his first 22 games but has gone cold the past month despite continuing to hit home runs, slashing just .183/.294/.441 over the last 26 games. Still, overall he's having a solid season, collecting 35 RBI and 27 runs scored with a .358 wOBA and 135 wRC+.
Josh Naylor Blasts 12th Home Run, Collects Three RBI
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor belted his 12th home run on Tuesday night while picking up three RBI and two walks in the Guardians' 7-4 victory over the Texas Rangers. Naylor is smoking hot right now after slugging five home runs in his last 10 games. He already has 12 home runs on the season and is currently on pace to crush his career-high 20-homer mark that he reached back in 2022. He ranks second in the league in HR and is tied for sixth with 33 RBI. The batting average this season has taken a hit at .268, but it's hard for fantasy managers to complain about that with how absurd his power numbers have been. Look for Naylor to stay hot with one more contest against the Rangers and three against the Twins to finish the week.
