Noah (Bo) Naylor is a prospect by either name
Former Ontario Blue Jay C Bo Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) is starting his first full pro season at class-A Lake County. Photo Tim Phillis/The News-Herald.
*This article was published by The News-Herald on April 5. You can read the original article here.
By any name, Bo Naylor a top catching prospect
By David S. Glasier
The News Herald
His given name is Noah-Gibson James Washington Naylor.
Thanks to an older brother who as a toddler called him “Boah” because he couldn’t quite wrap his tongue around Noah, he became Bo.
Now preferring to go by that catchy contraction, Bo Naylor is the top catching prospect in the Indians organization and a player worth watching on the Lake County Captains.
Baseball America ranked Naylor as the fourth-best prospect in the Cleveland Indians organization.
Why the Indians tabbed Naylor with the 29th overall pick in the first round of the June 2018 draft out of high school in Mississauga, Ont. has been apparent in the Captains first two games of the season at Classic Park.
Against the Great Lakes Loons on April 5, the 6-foot, 195-pound Naylor was deployed as the DH. He helped propel the Captains to a 6-1 victory over the visitors from Michigan and a 2-0 start.
In the bottom of the first inning, the left-handed-batting Naylor rifled a two-run single to left field to stake the Captains to a 2-0 lead. He scored on an RBI double by Quentin Holmes to extend the lead to 3-0 against Great Lakes starter and eventual loser Andre Jackson (0-1, 16.88 ERA).
Lake County starter Raymond Burgos (1-0, 0.00 ERA) allowed two hits in five innings to earn the victory.
Naylor, 19, was back in the thick of things in the bottom of the third inning.
After a ringing double to right field by Will Benson, Naylor again got to Jackson, this time with an RBI double to left field that chased home Benson to make it 4-0.
An RBI double by the next batter, Ulysses Cantu, allowed Naylor to race home from first base to score the fifth run.
“Growing up, I always had a good eye at the plate. I take a lot of pride in my hitting,” Naylor said before the game on April 5.
Making his pro debut last season for the rookie-league Arizona Indians, Naylor batted .274 in 33 games with two home runs, 17 RBI and six stolen bases in seven attempts.
Naylor takes similar pride in his work behind the plate.
“You have to understand game situations, the strengths of your pitcher, tendencies of the batters and the defense alignments,” Naylor said. “Catching is one of the most important positions in baseball. I love playing it.”
After the season-opening, 4-0 victory over Great Lakes on April 4, Captains manager Luke Carlin (Aylmer, Que.) applauded Naylor for his game call and handling of pitchers Luis Oviedo, Aaron Pinto and Dakody Klemmer.
Naylor comes from a family of athletes.
His father, Chris, played basketball, baseball and soccer. Jenice, his mom, was a standout in volleyball and track.
Older brother Josh Naylor, 21 and the originator of Boah, excelled at baseball and was the 12th overall pick in the first round of the June 2015 draft by the Miami Marlins. He was traded to San Diego in 2016 and plays for the Padres Triple-A affiliate in El Paso, Texas.
The two Naylor brothers were together at the 2017 All-Star Game in Miami. Josh Naylor was in the Futures Game and Bo in the High School Home Run Derby.
Their younger brother, 13-year-old Myles, is a promising baseball and basketball player.
Bo Naylor said until he was 14 years old, he divided his time and energies between baseball and hockey.
“In both sports, I was a grinder,” Naylor said, smiling.
It was at 14 that Naylor decided to focus on baseball. He got the most exposure playing for the Ontario Blue Jays, a travel team comprised of top-tier high school players from the greater Toronto area.
Naylor had a scholarship offer from Texas A&M, but elected to cast his lot with the Indians after being selected in the first round. He received a signing bonus of $2,332,700 US.
In only in his second pro season and less than two months removed from his 19th birthday, Naylor nevertheless is quite aware of the short distance geographically between Classic Park and Progressive Field.
“I always try to stay in the present, but it’s inevitable that you think about that,” he said.
Captains 6, Loons 1
Great Lakes 000 000 010 — 1 5 0
Lake County 302 100 00x — 6 10 2
Captains: Naylor 2h, 2r, 3RBI, Cantu 2h, RBI, 2B.
Great Lakes: Outman 1h, 1r, 2bb, Amaya 2B, 1bb
WP: Burgos 5IP, 2h, OER, 4K (1-0).
LP: Jackson 5ER, 3K (0-1); S: Alvarez 2K (1)
Records: Captains 2-0, Great Lakes 0-2
dglasier@news-herald.com
@nhglasier on Twitter