The New York Mets may be trying to win the winter with a splashy back-page headline deal, but the Washington Nationals made a much smaller trade Friday that improved their major league roster at a fairly minimal cost.
The Nationals get an above-average regular behind the plate in Yan Gomes, who makes up for chronic low OBPs with some power, above-average framing and good results against the running game. Washington's catchers hit an aggregate .214/.304/.320 last year, and that's with the benefit of eight intentional walks, while their primary catcher, Matt Wieters, has consistently graded out as one of the game's worst pitch framers. So much went wrong for Washington last year en route to an 82-80 record when they were preseason favorites to win the division; the vortex of death behind the plate may not have been the only reason, but it was a big one. Gomes could easily be a four-win upgrade, depending on how much he plays this year, and he should get the bulk of the playing time over Kurt Suzuki.
Cleveland gets one second-tier prospect and an ex-prospect who throws hard. Outfielder Daniel Johnson was the Nationals' fifth-round pick in 2016 out of New Mexico State University and had a very strong debut in full-season ball to start 2017, when he raked as a 21-year-old in low-A and held his own in high-A. His performance in Double-A this past season was a big step down, hampered by a hamate injury and exposure of his issues recognizing breaking balls, which explains why he hit just .163/.250/.239 off lefties for Harrisburg. His tools are still well ahead of his production; he's a plus runner with plus raw power that doesn't quite play in games, with some feel to hit by using the whole field. His speed could make him a plus defender in a corner given time and reps. He'll turn 24 in July, so his seasonal age for next year is 23, but he's behind most players his age developmentally because of his deficiencies at the plate, and Washington doesn't seem likely to have a spot for him to play anyway.
Jefry Rodriguez debuted in the majors last year after missing most of 2017 due to a suspension for a positive PED test result. He has a huge arm, averaging 95.4 mph in the majors last year (per Fangraphs), with a power curveball and below-average changeup, and no real idea of where the ball is going. He might have some role as a right-handed specialist, but without massively improved control and a functional changeup, it's hard to see him doing more than that.
This leaves Cleveland without an obvious starter behind the plate for 2019, so they may end up searching outside the organization. If not, Eric Haase could have a role; he hit .258/.349/.574 two years ago in Double-A, albeit with a high strikeout rate, then dropped off to .236/.288/.443 last year in Triple-A. It's power over hit, obviously, but he has a plus arm and is an adequate receiver, so he's not too far from being an adequate regular -- a .300ish OBP would probably make him one, just not necessarily what Cleveland might want as they try to win the AL Central again.