Former Guardians Outfielder Is Thriving In Transition To Pitching

Tyler Naquin was an outfielder in the Cleveland Guardians organization from 2016 until 2020.

He was part of that magical squad that fell just one win short of delivering a World Series title to the city in 2016.

An effective part-time power hitter back in the day, Naquin transitioned to pitching this year, and the Guardians gave him a chance, signing him to a minor league contract and giving him a platform, coaching, and innings to succeed.

It hasn’t always been smooth for Naquin, but he is now showing that the talent is there to at least make a run at the majors one day.

“RHP Tyler Naquin’s ranks amongst MWL relievers in 8.0 IP since his High-A debut on 7/9: – 0.00 ERA (T-1st) – 1 H (1st) – 0 R (T-1st) – .040 AVG (1st) – 1.13 H/9 (1st) – 0.63 WHIP (4th). This is not just a feel-good story, folks. He is carving,” Brendan Kantz, a member of the Lake County Captains’ broadcast team at the moment, posted on X.

RHP Tyler Naquin’s ranks amongst MWL relievers in 8.0 IP since his High-A debut on 7/9:

– 0.00 ERA (T-1st)
– 1 H (1st)
– 0 R (T-1st)
– 0.40 AVG (1st)
– 1.13 H/9 (1st)
– 0.63 WHIP (4th)

This is not just a feel good story folks, he is carving. 👀🔥#Guardians #Guardsball pic.twitter.com/WDBsOaMmFK

— BK (@KantzBrendan) August 4, 2025

Naquin started the season in the Arizona Complex League, getting himself familiar with the mound in a low-stress environment.

There, he posted a 5.14 ERA in 14 frames.

The Guardians noted he posted a 0.96 ERA in his last 9.1 innings in the Complex League, so they bumped him to High-A.

There, he has been brilliant, throwing eight scoreless frames and keeping his WHIP at an elite 0.63.

The strikeouts are not quite there yet (just five in the eight innings) and the walks have been a problem at both levels (he has four in High-A so far), but Naquin looks like a professional pitcher and not just a thrower.

Yes, he has a long way to go in refining his command and getting more swings and misses, and that’s what will give him a ticket to the higher levels eventually, but we can say his first year as a minor league pitcher has been a resounding success so far.