Guardians notes: Bo Naylor sent back to the minors as struggling catching duo remains on roster

CLEVELAND — The Guardians decided to stick with their struggling catching tandem of Mike Zunino and Cam Gallagher. After serving as the 27th man in a doubleheader against the Mets in New York on Sunday, prized prospect Bo Naylor was returned to Triple-A Columbus prior to Monday's series opener against the White Sox. Fans were hoping Naylor would remain with the big league team over either Zunino or Gallagher, who have combined to bat .146 with two home runs and seven RBIs, while throwing out only 8 of 48 attempted base stealers. Zunino led the majors with four passed balls through Sunday. "We all recognize that it hasn't been ideal with how things have played out so far with our catchers," said team president Chris Antonetti, who filled in for manager Terry Francona during his pregame media session. "But I give both Cam and Z a ton of credit for the work that they continue to put in to find a way. "Cam had a decent weekend, actually a road trip, where he not only contributed offensively but made some key plays defensively. We're seeing some signs with Z that he might be heading in the right direction, but it's been a tough few weeks." Naylor, Cleveland's first-round draft choice (29th overall) in 2018, appears ready for primetime, offensively, posting an .898 OPS with nine homers and 32 RBIs in 41 games for Columbus. "I don't think we really look at it as ready, because development continues no matter where a guy is," Antonetti said of Naylor, who came off the bench to go 0-for-2 in the first game of Sunday's twin bill. "I think what we look at is, what is our major league situation, what is our need? And then, is the player ready or in a position to come up and contribute in a positive way and help us win games?" While Naylor heads back to the minors, Cleveland will ride it out with Zunino and Gallagher for now. "I think we're hopeful that we can continue to get better as Bo's developing in Triple-A," Antonetti said. "We hopefully can continue to get better with the results up here with Z and Cam. And again, both of them continue to put in the work to try to make that happen. It's just the results haven't been what anyone would've wanted so far." ** In another move, the Guardians optioned reliever Tim Herrin back to Columbus to clear room for Monday's starting pitcher, right-hander Hunter Gaddis. Gaddis took the spot of Peyton Battenfield, who is on the injured list with shoulder inflammation. He is in his second stint with Cleveland after replacing an injured Triston McKenzie in the rotation to start the season and making five appearances (four starts), going 0-1 with a 6.86 ERA. Doctor's office McKenzie (shoulder strain) is scheduled to make his second rehab start for Columbus on Thursday, while Aaron Civale (oblique strain) will make his third for the Clippers on Tuesday. ** Outfield prospect George Valera was placed on the injured list at Columbus with a hamstring injury. The oft-injured Valera had just joined the Clippers after a lengthy rehab stay in Goodyear, Arizona. "More than anything, I feel for George," Antonetti said of Valera, who was Cleveland's third-ranked prospect by MLB.com prior to this year. "Just been a tough path with him. First, with a (hamstring injury) and then some of the wrist issues that lingered for a while. And he gets back to Columbus, starting to get his feet under him and then just in early work he kind of got his feet tangled and tweaked his hamstring. So we're hopeful that it's just a short-term issue and that he'll be back soon." Swing and a miss The Guardians entered Monday in third place (4½ games out of first) with losses in seven of their last 10 games and five of their last six. Offense has been an issue all season, with Cleveland ranking toward the bottom of the majors in nearly every category. "I hate losing, so it's not been fun going through what we've gone through over the last few weeks, but that's consistent with everybody in the major league environment," Antonetti said. "So I think what we're focused on is those emotions don't really help us. They're not productive. "We need to make sure we're doing what we can to help guys get better and improve the outcomes. And we've got an extraordinary group, with Tito and our coaching staff and the group supporting them that are doing everything they can to help make it better." Roundin' third The Guardians entered Monday tied for the MLB lead with 11 outfield assists. Right fielder Will Brennan's five assists were tied for second in the majors through Sunday. Browns cornerback Greg Newsome threw out one of the ceremonial first pitches. Tuesday, 6:10 p.m., BSGL; WEOL 930-AM and 100.3-FM, WTAM 1100-AM, WMMS 100.7-FM. Allen (1-1, 3.04) vs. Cease (2-3, 4.78). Contact Chris Assenheimer at (440) 329-7136 or cassenheimer@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter @CAwesomeheimer.