How a trade to the Mariners impacts Josh Naylor’s fantasy value

The first big move of the trade deadline happened Thursday when Arizona sent Josh Naylor, whom they acquired in an offseason trade with the Guardians, to the Mariners.

Naylor — who entered the weekend hitting .292 with 11 homers, 59 RBIs, 49 runs and a .807 OPS — will go from hitting behind Eugenio Suárez in a top-10 offense in a hitter-friendly ballpark to hitting behind Cal Raleigh, MLB’s home-run leader, in a top-10 offense playing its home games in the most pitcher-friendly park in the league over the past three years.

Though the move is a position upgrade for Seattle, it isn’t ideal for Naylor’s fantasy value — he was hitting .324 with five homers, 36 RBIs and a .855 OPS at Chase Field.

Since 2021, Naylor hit a homer roughly once every 24 at-bats — including a career-high 31 last year with Cleveland when he hit one every 18 at-bats.