Brewers May Promote MLB Trade Deadline Acquisition, Former First-Round Pick

The Brewers acquired the 26-year-old in a deal on Aug. 1, two days before the MLB trade deadline

May 7, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor (23) is congratulated by teammates after hitting a home run during the seventh inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Bo Naylor has been red-hot since being acquired by the Milwaukee Brewers on Aug. 1, two days before the MLB trade deadline.

The 26-year-old catcher landed with the Brewers along with reliever Codi Heuer following a trade with the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for outfielder Blake Perkins and relief pitcher Craig Yoho.

The younger brother of 2024 All-Star Josh Naylor has been playing with Triple-A Nashville since the move but could soon be promoted to Milwaukee.

"With an opportunity to expand their catching corps, the Milwaukee Brewers may call up newly acquired catcher Bo Naylor, especially since they already promoted him to be their 27th man at the Little League Classic a little more than a week ago," JR Radcliffe of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote Monday. "He hasn't appeared in a big-league game for the Brewers, but he also didn't play in the Class AAA Nashville Sounds' game Sunday, Aug. 30. Will his next at-bat come for Milwaukee?"

Radcliffe added that, despite his struggles earlier this year with the Guardians, the younger Naylor "had decent seasons" with Cleveland from 2023 to 2025.

The 2018 29th overall draft pick posted career highs in home runs (14), RBIs (47), doubles (22) and Wins Above Replacement (WAR) (1.6), among other categories, in 2025 across 414 plate appearances covering 123 games.

Radcliffe opined that Naylor could provide the Brew Crew a "chance to deploy Gary Sánchez more often as a designated hitter and pinch hitter, knowing it won't deprive them of a backup catcher."

Bo Naylor Could Provide Brewers With Much-Needed Pop

May 3, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor (23) looks down as he is pitch ran for during the ninth inning against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Scott Marshall-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Brewers, despite holding the best record in baseball, still rank last in MLB in home runs.

Naylor could add some pop to Milwaukee's lineup.

While his .199/.279/.372 career slash line across 1,131 big league games is tough to look at, Naylor's also hit 40 home runs in just 1,003 MLB at-bats.

He's been especially strong this month with the Sounds too, going 17-for-60 with four home runs, 17 RBIs, four doubles and 10 runs scored across 68 plate appearances covering 14 contests.

Naylor's currently riding a nine-game hitting streak in Nashville and has at least one knock in 12 of his 14 contests with the Sounds.

The Brewers still have William Contreras locked in as their starting backstop, but calling up Naylor to spell the three-time All-Star in the lineup occasionally would be a good idea.