The Guardians made a second notable trade on August 3. Hours after acquiring Jo Adell, Cleveland acquired All-Star pitcher Foster Griffin in a five-player deal with the Washington Nationals.

The Guardians’ Return

• SP Foster Griffin (3.06 ERA, 116 K over 129.1 IP)

Foster Griffin, a technical rookie by MLB standards, went from a prospective low-risk addition into an All-Star for the Washington Nationals. Griffin was able to keep hitters off balance enough to become an All-Star.

High chase pitcher who uses a high-80s cutter as his primary offering. Will regularly work the strike zone, limiting walks. However, he has been prone to giving up well-hit contact.

Even though Griffin is a rookie, he will be eligible for free agency this season since he signed with the Nationals as a foreign professional.

The Nationals’ Return

• SP Josh Hartle
• RP Will Dion
• RP Kendeglys Virguez
• OF Nick Mitchell

This is the second time that Nick Mitchell has been traded in his pro career. Nearly two years after he was traded as part of the Andres Gimenez deal, Mitchell now goes to the Nationals. High Take% hitter, as you can see below, which results in a lot of walks. However, not much power. His five home runs this season are a career-high.

Once a starting pitcher prospect with interesting metrics & a high-carry fastball, Will Dion has settled into a relief role. Dion has bounced back and forth between Triple-A and the Guardians this season. He struck out 52 over 37 innings for the Columbus Clippers.

Josh Hartle, also acquired two years ago by Cleveland in the Spencer Horwitz deal, has worked a mid-90s sinker with great effectiveness over his pro career. He struck out 88 over 93 innings with Akron and projects as a back-end starting pitcher.

Analysis

Either Washington tries to make a run with Griffin, or move him to a contender. And for Griffin, someone who lands strikes, gets ground balls, and works as a feel pitcher, the Guardians are not a bad landing spot.

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