The Cleveland Guardians have no shortage of talent on their roster, but the question heading into 2026 is who’s going to step up and consistently support José Ramírez in carrying the offensive load. One name that keeps coming up - and rightly so - is Bo Naylor. The young catcher flashed his potential late last season, but now it’s about turning that glimpse into something sustainable.
Naylor’s 2025 campaign got off to a slow start, but he finished with a flourish. In September, he hit .290 with three home runs, 16 RBIs, and an .872 OPS - numbers that suggest he’s capable of being much more than just a complementary piece in the lineup.
That version of Bo Naylor? That’s the one the Guardians need to see when the season opens in March.
Team insider Paul Hoynes summed it up well: “I’d like to see that version of Bo Naylor kind of filtered down through the six months of the season.” And he’s not wrong. While no one expects Naylor to maintain that exact pace over a full year - baseball doesn’t work like that - the Guardians are looking for steady growth and more consistent production at the plate.
And make no mistake: the clock is ticking. Naylor is entering a pivotal stretch in his career.
This could be his last real shot to prove he can be the guy behind the plate for Cleveland long-term. The organization has another promising catcher waiting in the wings in Cooper Ingle, and by all accounts, he’s not far from being big-league ready.
If Naylor stumbles early, the Guardians could be tempted to make a move.
To add to the pressure, the team brought back veteran Austin Hedges - a known commodity when it comes to defense and game-calling, but not someone you pencil into the lineup for his bat. Hedges is there for depth, leadership, and to help guide a young pitching staff, but he’s not the answer offensively. That spotlight still belongs to Naylor - for now.
What’s encouraging is that Naylor didn’t just get hot by accident. He made tangible adjustments to his approach at the plate late in the season, and the results followed.
He looked more confident, more selective, and more in control of his at-bats. That’s the version Cleveland needs - a catcher who can handle the staff and contribute with the bat.
First-year manager Stephen Vogt, a former catcher himself, knows how important that position is to the heartbeat of a team. And he’s likely to be patient - to a point. But if Naylor can’t find consistency early in the season, Vogt may have to start weighing other options.
The Guardians don’t need Naylor to be a superstar overnight. They just need him to be the player he showed he could be in September - and to bring that guy to the ballpark a lot more often in 2026.