Cleveland Guardians Urged To Make Trade In This Critical Area

The Cleveland Guardians made a couple of moves at the trade deadline, but they really need to address this major area.

Sep 4, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan (38) takes batting practice against the Kansas City Royals prior to a game at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images / Denny Medley-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians went into the MLB trade deadline with two major needs: starting pitching and an outfield bat.

They ended up swinging deals to address both areas, acquiring right-hander Alex Cobb in a trade with the San Francisco Giants and landing outfielder Lane Thomas from the Washington Nationals.

Needless to say, neither move has yielded incredibly positive results for the Guardians.

Cobb has dealt with a couple of annoying injuries (a broken fingernail and a blister) since arriving in Cleveland, and Thomas is slashing just .198/.274/.317.

Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller recently published a piece naming one vital area every team in the MLB needs to address via trade, and for the Guardians, it was adding an outfielder who can actually hit.

Cleveland's outfield has been an offensive disaster this season.

Yes, Steven Kwan got off to a scintillating start and was flirting with .400 in June, but the 26-year-old proceeded to hit .250 in July, .207 in August and is batting just .044 thus far in September, dropping his average to .288.

Then there is Tyler Freeman, who is slashing .209/.306/.322 on the year, and Will Brennan lays claim to a .685 OPS.

Rookie slugger Jhonkensy Noel has been a saving grace to the Guardians' lineup, having smashed 13 home runs over 158 plate appearances, but Cleveland definitely needs another reliable source of offense.

Obviously, it's too late for the Guardians to add someone now, but it's certainly an area Cleveland should attack during the offseason.

Of course, the Guardians aren't exactly known for making big splashes, so we'll see how they approach the issue in a couple of months.