Analyst Explains What The Guardians Need Before MLB Trade Deadline

The Cleveland Guardians are currently in the playoff hunt, but they're far from playing their best baseball at the moment. With the trade deadline rapidly approaching, one analyst, who is close to the team, believes it's still unclear how the front office will operate at the end of July.

MLB.com's Tim Stebbins recently explained what the Guardians need ahead of the trade deadline.

The first thing the analyst explained that the Guardians need is "clarity."

"Buy? Sell? A measured approach somewhere in between? The next month will provide a good idea of the right path forward for the Guardians. They remain in the thick of the AL Wild Card race but entered Sunday just 4-8 in June, during which the offense has struggled and scored four or fewer runs 11 times," wrote Stebbins.

With about six weeks before the deadline, the Guardians' season could head in any direction. Perhaps they'll tread water around .500, maybe they'll go on a run, or they could head down a similar path as the start of June.

Until it's clear which way Cleveland's season is headed, it's hard to determine whether they'll add or subtract at the deadline.

Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) high fives players after hitting a solo home run in the eighth inning of the MLB game between Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Guardians at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Friday, May 16, 2025. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

If the Guardians are in the playoff picture at the end of June, Stebbins points to one clear area the front office needs to add in.

He wrote, "Provided they stay in the thick of the postseason picture, adding a bat to boost the offense (and take some pressure off the rotation) would make sense."

The Guardians will be an interesting team to watch over the next month, as their on-field performance will be the determining factor in what they do at the deadline.

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