A Further Look at the Guardians/Reds Will Benson/Justin Boyd Trade
The Guardians cleared a 40 man spot now, gave Will Benson a fair shot somewhere else, and were able to add a player with an intriguing set tools.
It took a little longer than expected, but the Cleveland Guardians finally made a trade this offseason. It maybe wasn’t quite the trade most expected, and ones that fans were also hoping for. But their swap of 2016 first round pick Will Benson to the Cincinnati Reds for the Reds 2022 Competitive Balance B pick was both necessary and interesting.
Why the Guardians traded Benson
By know, you should know that Cleveland has needed to clear one or more 40 man roster spots for a little over a year now in some fashion. Maybe more ideally, they would have already done so by cashing in some of their prospect depth for someone who helps them in the majors this year and over the next few years as they look to contend for a division title again in 2023 and deeper postseason runs for years to come.
Despite their attempts to acquire catcher Sean Murphy and other reported interests in various outfielders over the last two years or so, this type of trade was always an alternative.
So clearing Benson’s 40 man spot solves one problem on its own, though not that they traded Benson just to remove him from their calculus no matter what the return was. But more on that later.
Benson, despite his gains, er, cut down on strikeouts in 2022 at Triple-A, was still blocked in Cleveland’s outfield log jam. I also don’t know if you would completely accurately call what he did contact gains, which is why I hesitated on how to classify it last year.
In 401 plate appearances at Triple-A, Benson posted an 8.7% Swinging Strike rate. His best previous mark there was his 14.1% mark in 2018 when Lake County was the club’s Low-A affiliate. So to come close to halving what is a very problematic mark and doing it at the highest level of the minors is nothing short of improbable and impressive. The only eyebrow to raise about it is if it came with a more passive approach to minimize swing and miss issues. You can’t whiff what you don’t swing at. Benson previously walked at a very healthy rate before and pushed it to 18% in Triple-A. His previous career high was 16% back in Low-A. There is also the question of how much pitchers struggled in Triple-A this year with the ball. There have been players pitching in Triple-A this year who have mentioned the ball being slippery and different than they’ve used before. How much of that is a factor? It’s hard to say. You can’t take away from the gains Benson did make in cutting down his strikeout rate so dramatically at the highest level, but it also can’t be treated as a sign the contact issues are fully solved or down to a reasonable level for good now.
The other component of this is that Benson was blocked. Yes, Myles Straw had well below average season offensively, but he has a reasonable contract in Cleveland now and he was basically the best defensive centerfielder in the game last year and Cleveland will be committed to that. Steven Kwan has obviously laid claim to left field after his big rookie year, while in right field, the Guardians seem to prefer the mix of Oscar Gonzalez, perhaps Will Brennan and maybe Josh Naylor on occasion. It’s the same reason they traded Nolan Jones. There’s also the case of George Valera potentially being ready to contribute some time in 2023. Richie Palacios, who also could have been a trade candidate, is on the 40 and seems to have favor as a pinch hitter. Besnon’s upside probably also made him more valuable in a trade to a rebuilding team like Cincinnati. So what do Straw, Kwan, Gonzalez, Brennan and Palacios have in common? They don’t have strikeout issues. Valera does to an extent, but not to the same history as Benson.
Cleveland once again preferred more of a contact oriented option while finding a way to clear a 40 man roster spot of a player who likely would have been stashed in Triple-A for them, while getting a player back they seem to like.
Who is Justin Boyd?
Cleveland opted to trade Nolan Jones (who ironically was their second round pick in 2016, with Benson was their first rounder) for someone who was 40 man eligible. One of the draws to trading for the Reds 2022 Competitive Balance B pick is that he doesn’t have to go on the 40 man roster. Boyd represents a lot more than just a prospect the Guardians got that doesn’t need to occupy a 40 man roster spot until 2025.
Boyd hit .373 at Oregon State his second year at school, only struck ou 18% of the time and walked 16% of the time. He might not actually make the elite amount of contact that Cleveland would normally prefer, but that’s a decent track record that should lead to a solid contact rate in the pros.
He’s able to make a good rate of contact because he’s got a very simple, and short swing. Based on the limited video out there, Boyd has a very compact swing with a surprising amount of bat speed and slight loft to his swing. This should allow him to tap into some power without sacrificing contact.
Boyd also proved in college he’s patient enough to draw a significant amount of walks. His in-game takes in his pro debut last year, as brief and rough as it was, show a hitter who is patient, not passive and has an idea of how to control the strike zone so far.
The other area where it is easy to see Boyd excel is his speed. He can regularly be seen in college posting plus run times from home to first. He was 24-of-31 at Oregon State in 2022 and a perfect 6-of-6 last year in his pro debut. So it is fair to assume speed should be a significant part of his package as a player. Even if he gets a little bigger to add some strength, he should maintain 55 speed.
There are not a ton of chances to see Boyd defensively but he did make a nice homer-robbing catch in college and most feel he can handle all three outfield positions and there’s no reason he shouldn’t be given a chance in center with his speed. That doesn’t always translate to being a good centerfielder or outfielder, but it’s worth testing.
I couldn’t find much video of him throwing in the pros or as an amateur, but in high school, according to Perfect Game, Boyd threw 83 and worked out at catcher with a 2.16 pop time. Without seeing him throw, and seeing some added strength, it could be fair to guess he has at least an average arm.
Depending on how much pop he can get to, Boyd could have a chance to be an average regular thanks to his speed and defensive potential, and being able to draw a walk. If he proves that his strikeout rate in his brief pro debut was a fluke and return closer to his college rates of walks and strikeouts, he should show as a potential average regular, although he’ll need to get to a bit more pop to profile in a corner. He could play as a reserve with his defense and speed.
Boyd’s Fit for 2023 and Beyond
Boyd only had 80 plate appearances in Single-A in 2023, but he’ll be 22 before the season starts and he was advanced in college. He missed some time after turning pro but I would expect that he’ll vie for playing time at High-A Lake County to start. Cleveland shouldn’t have a lot of high priority outfielders at High-A to start, but Boyd and Chase DeLauter should be among them.
As for Benson, with regular playing time, he could carve out a role for himself with the Reds, even if he never does improve his contact rate. There’s some risk he turns out like Bradley Zimmer. But he’s warranted a shot at the big league level to see if he can be better than that. Either way, he should fill a role on a major league team in some capacity. Benson is an exciting player who has worked hard, and is a great kid who is easy to root for. This is a good chance for him to have real playing time on a team where he shouldn’t be buried and are looking for guys to lock down future roles. That ballpark should be a nice fit for him as well.
Good read. Best info on Justin Boyd I've seen.