The Guardians didn’t get much applause when they sent Josh Bell away in August of 2023 for a minor league prospect. At the time, it looked like another move in a rough season, the kind that made fans feel like the team was folding up early.
Now, that deal has a very different feel.
The prospect Cleveland got back, Kahlil Watson, has reached the majors and is starting to give the organization real reason to believe it may have come out ahead in a meaningful way. On the latest episode of the Terry’s Talkin’ podcast, cleveland.com columnist Terry Pluto walked through Watson’s path and why this trade could end up looking like one of the better ones the Guardians have made in recent memory.
Watson’s road wasn’t exactly smooth. Before Cleveland got him, he was a 20-year-old former first-round pick in the Miami system, playing at High-A Beloit. He had been taken 16th overall out of Wake Forest High School in North Carolina, but his early pro career came with plenty of turbulence.
In 2023 at Beloit, Watson hit .206 with 10 doubles, seven homers and 22 RBI in 58 games. He had played about 170 games in Miami’s minor league system and was hitting only .235 when the Guardians acquired him. Baseball America had still ranked him as the third-best prospect in the Marlins system, but the numbers alone didn’t scream immediate payoff.
There were also concerns about his maturity. Watson had been ejected from games and had built a reputation for a hot temper. Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti described his career at the time as “a work in progress,” while saying the hope was that he could grow into a major leaguer.
Cleveland, as it often does with young players, stayed patient.
The organization sent Watson to Double-A Akron in 2024, where he hit .220 with a .712 OPS and 16 home runs. The batting average was modest, but the power was real enough to keep the door open.
He took another step in 2025, splitting time between Double-A and Triple-A and putting up a .250 average, an .813 OPS and another 16 home runs. Then came the move that fit Cleveland’s usual blueprint: Watson shifted from shortstop and second base to the outfield.
“He had a good spring training. It was very impressive,” Pluto said. “He’s an athletic, left-handed hitter.”
At Class AAA Columbus this season, Watson kept moving forward. In 56 games, he hit .255 with 12 homers and an .861 OPS before getting called up on June 17.
So far in the majors, the early signs have been encouraging. Watson has hit .246 with an OPS of .622 in 17 games and has driven in nine runs. That includes a game-winning RBI single Friday night against the White Sox.
Pluto did point to one issue that stands out: 19 strikeouts and only two walks in Watson’s first 57 at-bats.
Still, the larger picture is what has Pluto viewing Watson as another example of Cleveland trusting its process with a young player.
“It’s an example of patience because he’s only 23 now,” Pluto said. “They were content to work with him and see if maybe he could become the outfielder they need.”
Bell, meanwhile, has moved on through Miami, Arizona, Washington and Minnesota since leaving Cleveland. Watson’s story is still being written, but the Guardians have at least given themselves a chance to turn that 2023 trade into a win.
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