Guardians Urged To Pursue Intriguing Bat In 'Perfect' Trade

The Guardians are in need of some extra offense, and a division rival may have the answer for them.

Jun 9, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Tigers designated hitter Mark Canha (21) celebrates in the dugout after scoring a run against the Milwaukee Brewers in the first inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports / Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Guardians have been rolling and were riding a five-game winning streak heading into their Monday night matchup with the Baltimore Orioles.

The Guardians' offense has been mashing of late, with Steven Kwan continuing his quest for .400 and Josh Ramirez and Josh Naylor contributing in a major way.

As a matter of fact, Naylor was just named AL Player of the Week.

However, in spite of big seasons from that trio and utility mand David Fry, Cleveland could still to improve its lineup depth.

Four of the Guardians' regulars lay claim to an OPS well under .700, which could pose problems in the playoffs.

That's why Cleveland may end up pursuing a couple of bats between now and the July 30 MLB trade deadline (the Guardians also need starting pitching, but that's another story).

Liam Hanley of ClutchPoints outlined what a "perfect" trade deadline would look like for Cleveland, and among the three acquisitions he listed was Detroit Tigers slugger Mark Canha.

Canha has done a little bit of everything for the Tigers in 2024, playing first base and both corner outfield spots while also serving as a designated hitter.

The 35-year-old is slashing .243/.351/.368 with six home runs and 30 RBI over 291 plate appearances this season, and while that isn't fantastic, it would actually represent an offensive upgrade for the Guardians.

It should be noted that Canha is actually making nice contact when he does hit the ball, with only 10.1 percent of his contact being soft. That's a career-best by a mile. His hard-hit percentage isn't terrific, coming in at 27.5 percent, but his medium contact is 62.4 percent.

Additionally, Canha's line-drive percentage is 20.1 percent, a tick above his career average of 19.6 percent.

This indicates that Canha could be due for a bit of an uptick in production over the second half of the season. His current .719 OPS is a lifetime low, but based on his peripherals, it is within reason to believe that he will end up closer to his career average of .768 when it's all said and done in 2024.

The University of California product slashed a very respectable .262/.355/.400 as recently as last year, so he may very well have some juice left in the tank.

He may not be Pete Alonso, but Canha could end up representing one of the more capable bats available over the next several weeks.