Guardians Complete Will Benson Trade With Reds
The Cleveland Guardians traded away one of their higher-ranked prospects in early February. They sent Will Benson to their in-state rivals, Cincinnati Reds for outfielder Justin Boyd and a player to be named later.
Well, that player has finally been revealed.
The Guardians and Reds finished the trade with Cleveland acquiring left-handed pitcher Steve Hajjar.
Hajjar was the Minnesota Twins' second-round pick in 2021 and was sent to Reds as part of the Tyler Mahle deal during the 2022 trade deadline. He has a pro-career ERA of 3.61 in 15 starts. If there's one thing this prospect knows how to do, it's strikeout batters.
In the 52.1 innings, he's pitched, he's struck out 83 batters, and walked just 32 hitters. That brings Hajjar's SO/9 to 14.3. If the Guardians can help develop Hajjar like they've been able to do with numerous pitchers before him, then they could be looking at a real diamond in the rough.
The only real concern is that this is over a short time frame. Hajjar was limited to just those 15 starts because of shoulder inflammation that's landed him on the IL more than once.
Hajjar will appear at Cleveland's Minor League camp shortly.
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Read More:
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