World Series dream will wait until next year for Mississauga brothers

So far in their young professional baseball careers, Josh and Bo Naylor have already set a few records and realized some other pretty cool accomplishments, too.

Competing in and winning a World Series together as members of Major League Baseball’s Cleveland Guardians, though, is something that’ll have to wait at least another year for the brothers from Mississauga.

Josh, 27, a hulking first baseman/DH, and Bo, three years younger and a solidly built catcher, were eliminated from the MLB playoffs along with their teammates Saturday night in Cleveland. The New York Yankees clinched the best-of-seven American League Championship Series with a 5-2 Game 5 victory to punch their ticket to the World Series and a showdown with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Naylors may have been sent home for another off-season, but not before they accomplished yet something else noteworthy to baseball watchers — they became the fourth set of brothers to ever have one drive home the other with a base hit during post-season play.

Bo Naylor doubled to right in the bottom of the second inning of Saturday’s contest to bring brother Josh around to score on the play (see video below). The RBI hit gave the Guardians a short-lived 1-0 lead.

Bo Naylor driving in Josh was the 4th instance in a postseason game of a brother driving in brother, joining:

2001 ALDS G4: Jeremy Giambi > Jason Giambi
1996 NLDS G2: Tony Gwynn > Chris Gwynn
1927 WS G2: Paul Waner > Lloyd Waner

h/t @EliasSports https://t.co/TgHg6OK6Dn

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) October 20, 2024

The last brothers to turn that trick were the Giambis in 2001. As members of the Oakland A’s, Jeremy Giambi collected an RBI hit to score Jason Giambi in the American League Division Series.

In 1996, the San Diego Padres’ sibling act of Tony and Chris Gwynn pulled off the feat in the National League Division Series while way back in 1927, Paul and Lloyd Waner did the same as members of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the World Series against the Yankees.

The Naylor brothers have shown in their brief time together so far in the major leagues they have a penchant for dramatic moments.

Not only did Josh and Bo hit home runs in the same inning in a game earlier this season to help the Guardians to victory, they did so on National Siblings Day (celebrated in both the U.S. and Canada) of all days.

And that wasn’t the first time the Naylors accomplished the feat. They pulled it off initially one season earlier, on July 14, 2023 in Texas.

Having just concluded his fifth season with Cleveland, Josh earned his first all-star nod in his career this past season. The St. Joan of Arc Secondary School (Mississauga) product joined baseball’s best of the best at the 94th MLB All-Star Game, held July 16 in Texas.

This past regular season, Josh Naylor enjoyed his most successful campaign to date, numbers wise. The 5-foot-11, 250-pound slugger slammed a career-high 31 homers to go along with 108 RBIs, also a career best.

In doing so, though, his normally impressive batting average (.308 during an injury-shortened 2023 in which he drove in 97 runs to go with 17 home runs) took a tumble to .243 in 563 at-bats.

Bo, meanwhile, continues to develop his stroke at the plate. The 6-foot, 205-pound backstop finished the 2024 regular season with 13 homers, 39 RBIs and a .201 batting average in 354 at-bats.

Bo Naylor, also out of St. Joan of Arc Secondary School, and his big brother were both first-round MLB draft picks out of high school — Josh a 2015 first pick of the Miami Marlins and Bo a top pick of Cleveland in 2018.

After being drafted, Josh switched clubs and spent a short time with the Padres in San Diego before debuting with the Guardians in 2020.