Austin Hedges and Josh Naylor traded verbal barbs in the Cleveland Guardians’ 6-5 series-finale win over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday night, after an elbow-out hit-by-pitch moment and a heated exchange in the game’s later stages.
Sunday night’s Guardians-Mariners clash didn’t stay on the field for long.
Austin Hedges and Josh Naylor—former teammates who shared four full seasons together with the Cleveland Guardians and the San Diego Padres—ended up in the middle of a tense. personal back-and-forth as the game unfolded. They last played together in 2024. after Cleveland traded Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks. and then the Mariners re-signed him last offseason.
The friction began when Naylor stuck an elbow out against Guardians reliever Tim Herrin. Under the strict letter of the MLB rulebook. a batter must attempt to get out of the way to be granted a hit-by-pitch. but that enforcement is rare. Hedges visibly didn’t like what he saw, and the exchange escalated fast.
Naylor responded by yelling, “You f***ing loser,” per the lip-readers at Jomboy, and later made a wanking motion at him. Hedges’ reply was blunt: “No one likes you. Literally nobody likes you.” Near the end of the inning, Naylor was later seen telling Hedges, “Do something about it.”
After the verbal fireworks, the game still mattered—and Cleveland finished the series with a result that steadied the moment. Austin Hedges got the edge over Josh Naylor as the Guardians took down the Mariners 6-5 in the series finale.
Seattle set the early tone, jumping out to a 3-0 lead after three innings and not allowing a run until the fifth frame. The Mariners added another score in the following inning, but the Guardians answered with five huge runs in the eighth, fending off a Seattle response to secure the win.
On the mound, Gavin Williams started and lasted five innings, striking out six batters while conceding six hits and two runs. Matt Festa earned his second win of the season, while Cade Smith recorded his 26th save of the campaign.
With the victory, Cleveland improved to a 44-40 record and held second spot in the AL Central Division standings. The Guardians sit above the Minnesota Twins and the Detroit Tigers while trailing the Chicago White Sox.
They’ll stay home for their next series, with the Texas Rangers visiting. Game 1 is scheduled for June 29 at 7:10 p.m. ET—after a night that ended with plenty of heat, even after the final out.
Cleveland Guardians Seattle Mariners Austin Hedges Josh Naylor Tim Herrin Gavin Williams Matt Festa Cade Smith MLB AL Central