By Adeniyi Precious 
Remember the Mets’ underwhelming moves at the 2022 trade deadline? A lot of names come to mind—Daniel Vogelbach, who was decent but eventually wore out his welcome, and Darin Ruf, who still haunts us. In the bullpen, Mychal Givens didn’t really help much either. But let’s not forget Tyler Naquin, an outfielder the Mets grabbed. He ended up starting in right field after Starling Marte got injured, though his time with the Mets didn’t last long. In 2022, Naquin posted a lackluster .203/.246/.390 in 130 plate appearances. A bit of a surprise since he had a solid .809 OPS in 2021. After a rough 2023 with the White Sox (where he didn’t get a hit in 8 plate appearances), it seemed like his MLB days were over—until now.
Naquin is doing something unexpected: he’s becoming a pitcher! The Cleveland Guardians gave him a minor league deal, and he’s trying to reinvent himself. The Guardians have been known to turn position players into pitchers, and Naquin’s giving it a shot as he turns 34 this April. He’s always had a strong arm in the outfield, but pitching is a whole different ballgame. It’ll be interesting to see how he does!
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