Guardians Acquire Former All-Star Slugger in Striking Trade Proposal

Could the Cleveland Guardians swing a big trade to acquire this former All-Star outfielder?

Oct 2, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins (31) celebrates a solo home run against the Kansas City Royals in the fifth inning in game two of the Wild Card round for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians absolutely need to improve their lineup, especially after trading Josh Naylor earlier in the offseason.

The problem is that the Guardians were not in on any of the top hitters in free agency, and with the market having dried up, Cleveland will have to explore shrewd trades in order to bolster its offense.

Well, Quincy Wheeler of Covering the Corner has created a very intriguing trade proposal for the Guardians, where they would send one of Hunter Gaddis, Franco Aleman or Andrew Walters along with an additional prospect to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for outfielder Cedric Mullins.

"Mullins has a career 119 wRC+ against RHP but has been an overall league average hitter over the past three years," Wheeler wrote. "The primary reasons I could see the Orioles trading Mullins is that this is his last year of team control and he saw significant declines in his centerfield defense in 2024 (-5 DRS and 3 OAA). ... The Guardians get a proven platoon option who can help in center-field and likely fill in for right-field as well."

Moving Gaddis—who was a critical part of Cleveland's elite bullpen in 2024—would obviously sting, but the Guardians have so many good relievers that they can afford to trade from depth. Parting with one of Aleman or Walters would definitely be far more palatable, though.

Mullins slashed .234/.305/.405 with 18 home runs and 54 RBI over 499 plate appearances this past season. He made the All-Star team back in 2021 when he slashed .291/.360/.518 with 30 homers, 37 doubles and 59 RBI.

The 30-year-old owns a lifetime slash line of .252/.320/.425, so outside of 2021, he was never really an elite hitter in any capacity. Plus, his defense, as Wheeler noted, is questionable.

Surrendering Gaddis for Mullins would be a steep price to pay, but it would be worth it for Cleveland to at least consider the Greensboro, N.C. native to add some much-needed pop to the lineup.