Cleveland Guardians 2024 Second Half Top 50 Prospects
Pre-trade deadline, post draft prospect rankings..
2B Travis Bazzana
Not much to say that hasn’t already been said about Bazzana. His approach should translate well to the pro game, he already maximizes his offensive skill set by being patient (albeit coming with some passivity), pulling his fly balls and being an above average runner. He might be average at second and he might already be at his max physical projection. But he offers an incredibly high-value floor with some ceiling still. His work ethic and character are approve reproach and I wouldn’t doubt his ability to improve his defensively or even eventually offer average defense in center field even.
1B Kyle Manzardo
While his initial taste of the majors came without much power and walks, I still feel pretty good about Manzardo’s ability to hit, get on base and get to at least 20 homers, while playing average defense at first base. He does struggle with changeups and might have some long term platoon split issues, but neither of those seem to be too concerning to not think he won’t reach his floor.
INF Juan Brito
If I thought Brito had a true defensive home where he excelled, I’d have him above Manzardo. Brito shows a good approach at the plate as a switch hitter and also maximizes fringe- average power with pull side launch angles. He just doesn’t run well or have a position I feel he excels at. He might fit best in left long term. Perhaps his offensive talents combined with playing fringy defense at second, first, third and left might be enough to offset a lack of positional value. He seems like a sure bet to get traded though.
1B Ralphy Velazquez
No longer a catcher, the bat will have to do more to carry Velazquez’s power now. So far, it looks like that should be the case. He has strong exit velocities and bat speed to go along with solid plate discipline. There’s still some refinement to be done. He could wind up having something similar to Kyle Schwarber type value at 1B. Cleveland is trying him occasionally in the outfield.
INF/OF Angel Martinez
He won’t be a prospect much longer, but Martinez has shown the ability to adapt to the outfield quite well, utilizing solid speed and range. He’s shown a little more issues chasing recently at the major league level, but that’s not who he was in the minors and he should adjust back. He’s also shown more surprising easy power, though it’s more gap power. He’s not a shortstop, but he should handle second or any outfield spot solidly.
OF Chase DeLauter
The most important ability is availability, and right now that has been about a 30 grade tool for DeLauter. Injuries to both feet have cost him a lot of time. When he’s healthy, there’s a good approach, contact skills, power and plenty of arm for right field. He may have some platoon split issues as well and there’s still enough for him left to prove against upper level pitching to feel more confident here. But a healthy, developing talent, DeLauter would be an easy #2 here.
OF Jaison Chouirio
It might be 45 power in the end, but there’s enough contact skills and zone control to project a leadoff type future for Chourio with his speed and that also gives him the ability to stay in center. He still has some room to fill out as well.
RHP Braylon Doughty
Good athleticism, above average velocity, a real feel for spin, and competitiveness give Doughty an interesting floor for a high school arm. High school arms are still quite volatile and Doughty lacks physical projection, already coming in at 6’1 with just a little room to get stronger, but has the look of a mid-rotation arm, though other arms in his class may have more upside.
1B CJ Kayfus
Kayfus came to Cleveland with a good hit tool and approach and very fringy power for first base. He could add some strength still, but he’s maximizing his approach with pulled fly balls already. Kayfus could enter Manzardo territory but might actually make more contact. He has had issues with breaking balls though, so he’ll need to prove it against upper level pitching. He might be able to handle left field too, which gives him a tad more value, but Manzardo has a little more strength for extra base hits at the moment.
INF Angel Genao
The switch hitting infielder has started to fill out his frame some, which has allowed some more in-game power to emerge. Again, it’s probably fringe-average power, but Genao doesn’t get cheated. He swings hard and makes a surprising amount of contact for that approach. While he is aggressive, he does have some patience so far, working counts even if he doesn’t walk a ton. There’s 15 homer power there with easy plus speed. He might profile best at third base defensively, because second base would be a waste of a plus arm, but his range works there too. He also seems like a trade candidate with emerging potential.
RHP Joey Oakie
A plus slider and a deceptive fastball that runs into the mid-90s give Oakie a promising package to start with as a high school arm. Another prep that has less than ideal physical projection (6’3, but that might be a little generous) and lacks a changeup. The upshoot here is lack of development coming from a light high school baseball scene that doesn’t start until May, and Oakie is a talented basketball player who never focused on baseball. So the hope of a good package to start with molded by pro instruction and a focus on baseball gives him a lot more to grow into.
RHP Austin Peterson
Taking a leap here, but Peterson is 91-93, tops out at 94 and has a ton of extension his delivery, which helps the velocity play up. He has good control and command, and should have three other pitches that profile as average or fringe average, with the slider leading the way, an potentially average changupe and a curve that can flash average at times. There’s a good combination for success here. He might be the biggest surprise development in the pitching factory. He missed plenty of bats in college, but not as many in Low-A a year ago, but he’s taken a huge step forward this year. He’s got plenty of size too. There’s some Bieber/Civale traits here, and actually maybe some Cliff Lee, where he doesn’t miss tons of bats, but has enough stuff and control to get it done.
LHP Joey Cantillo
Cantillo has better stuff overall than Peterson, an easily plus changeup, an average curveball and fastball. But the control has just completely left him. He’s been better at points in the second half. When he got to Cleveland, he was control over stuff, and now it’s the reverse. He may work better in the pen as a three pitch guy, but the stuff is mid-rotation quality. He just needs to throw some strikes occasionally. He can miss bats.
RHP Andrew Walters
Walters has hit a hiccup at Triple-A but righted himself at the end of July. It’s a power fastball with great metrics (96-98). He’s got a cutter/slider/splitter. The splitter is new and he’s a very fastball heavy arm. But the control is good. There’s some Cade Smith here and we’ve seen how well it’s gone for Smith this year.
LHP Parker Messick
Despite a fastball that runs 90-92, Messick sneaks fastballs by hitters with a deceptive delivery thanks to his shallow approach angle, so it plays up some. He’s got a changeup that tumbles to turn lineups over and fight against right handers, and a slider that should give him a way to get lefties to chase. He pairs that with above average control. He’s gradually improved his conditioning too which has helped. There’s some good safety here in a back end rotation type. While that’s not the sexiest in a top 20, or 15, that reliability is important where the system has had a bit of a bump lately developing arms.
LHP Alex Clemmey
I’m lower on Clemmey than most because it’s a nasty fastball/slider combo without much control and a lack of a change. A high school arm with big risk, but I think he’s a reliever, but the control needs work I think to get there.
INF Welbyn Francisca
I’m a little lower than most places on Francisca because of Cleveland’s recent record for hit-first middle infielders. Francisca does have a fluid swing with feel for control but he’s undersized and likely won’t stick at shortstop. At most he may grow into fringe-average power, unless Cleveland works with him on some better exit velos and pulled fly balls, which he’s yet to show and his swing isn’t currently optimized for. A lot here relying on the hit tool and there is potential for a good one, but it’s all upside right now.
RHP Daniel Espino
It’s hard to know what things will look like for Espino, when (if?) he pitches again to start 2025. The questions in February will be there to see if he’s finally going to get back on the mound, and when that happens, what two serious shoulder surgeries have done to his arm and stuff. He might be a reliever when he comes back, but there’s very little faith that he’ll be healthy until he proves it. When healthy, he’s still the second best prospect in this system. This ranking is simply about if he can actually pitch 100 innings again.
INF Alex Mooney
Mooney is sort of the antithesis of Francisa. He doesn’t quite have Francisca’s feel for contact and it’s an aggressive approach, but he’s grown into some power by working on his swing and is pulling the ball for more power. He probably handles second or third better than short. He’s got more than enough arm for third base, however he’s had some accuracy issues that can probably be cleaned up. High marks for makeup here as a player who will likely get the most out of his skills, though he ultimately might be more of a bat first utility type.
C Cooper Ingle
I know I said a hit tool driving Francisca’s profile scare me, and Ingle’s offensive profile is driven by the same thing, but also has real discipline at the plate and has shown more power as a pro thanks to the ability to pull the ball in the air. Defense is still a work in progress for Ingle. He does a lot of things well but has a fringe-average arm. If he shores that up, he’s got a well rounded package. Thought he hasn’t played outside of catcher in the pros, he did play the outfield in college and that could make him more valuable. He’s got platoon split issues but is still somewhat young for his level. He might be a bat first backup type catcher with some versatility, but I think he can improve enough to be average.
C Jacob Cozart
It feels like cheating to put Cozart right with Ingle, but I had a hard time separating them. Cozart has more raw power, but has less of a hit tool to work with. Cozart also has a stronger arm and is a bigger, more physical catcher. He might profile more as a defense/power platoon backup, but contact concerns make me wonder if there is some Austin Hedges to this profile, which is still a valuable career path, but I think Ingle might be more of a hitter.
1B/OF Jhonkensey Noel
I’ve been low on Noel the last few years and remain lower on him on him than most because his tendency to chase is going to be too great to overcome to be anything more than a part-time, low-OBP power type. He’s surprised me with his decent play in right field and if you get a 1-4 game out of him where the one is a homer or double, that can be helpful. He could be a menacing pinch hitter.
OF George Valera
Valera and Noel have similar contact issues, though Valers doesn’t chase as much and makes more contact, but Valera can be a bit more passive, has obviously has had health issues or he’d already be in the majors. He’s likely a right field, platoon bat whenever he reaches the majors, which isn’t a bad role. He just needs to get healthy, but it’s interesting Cleveland has yet to give him a chance. That chance might have to come with another organization though.
INF/OF Kahlil Watson
Watson has as much potential as anyone on this list, a potential 20/20 shortstop or centerfielder. However, he only shows it in flashes and strikeouts are an issue. The bat speed is like lightening. He’s shown a lot of growth this year, moving around the field at second, third and the outfield, and he’s done well at each position. A power/speed utility type isn’t out of the question as a floor here, but hes going to have to curb the strikeouts in a big way to do it. So he’s ranked mostly on potential still.
RHP Chase Mobley
When I initially did my post-drank rankings, I had Mobley much higher. But after going back and looking at video, I have concerns about his arm action. I’ve never seen one quite like his and I think Cleveland is going to have to work with him on some changes. But you want to be careful how much you change him because he’s been pitching this way his whole life so far and it’s what has made his stuff electric. There’s easy plus velocity here and a slider. He’s also got a good changeup. Strike throwing needs to improve as well but he’s got a better build than either of Doughty or Oakie to dream on.
LHP Matt Wilkinson
I contemplated where to slot Tugboat because the fastball is very fringy at best, maybe even below average at 88-91. But there could be some found velocity from him with development for Cleveland and improved conditioning. It’s hard to bank on all that, but the control is there as is a potentially above average slider and average changeup. Wilkinson has a real feel for pitchability, competitiveness and also brings deception with his control. If his velocity takes any step forward, there’s more here.
LHP Ryan Webb
A plus curveball and an average changeup carries Webb’s profile for me. The fastball is fringe at 91-93. He’s been able to miss bats with his stuff though despite fringy-control. I see the potential for a mid-rotation arm here with a little more heat and improved control but he’s 25 and I don’t know much more development there will be here. He’s three years out of Tommy John now, so that should be in his past. Perhaps a lost year still gives him a little time to take a step forward but he’ll be 26 in 2025. He’s still someone Cleveland should either move or add to the 40 because I think there’s a fifth/sixth starter here, but I could see a better move to the pen with his velo ticking up, a big curve and solid change.
LHP Jacob Bresnahan
Another ACL prospect I’m taking a risk on with an arrow up here. He’s 89-93 with a projectable frame, so I’m also banking on some more velocity here as well. He also has a promising slider and change, along with a deceptive delivery and control. Like Tugboat, it’s more control than command and I’m projecting a step forward by ranking here as well, but at this point in the system it’s more about upside for me since most of the rest of the system offers less safety anyway.
INF Rafael Ramirez
I had Ramirez much higher in my pre-season list, but his hit tool is very raw and suspect, more than I thought. There’s a lot of swing and miss here. I love the projectable body, power and arm. But I suspect he won’t be sticking at shortstop much longer and it’s a long term project to work on his hit tool. I love the upside here, but the risk was always extreme and it’s clear that he might have a 30 grade hit tool.
INF Jose Tena
Tena has big exit velocities for a middle infield type and a player his size. He’s adept at hitting the ball in the air from low angles, which is great for someone with his pop. But his approach is also very poor and he chases way too often, plus he struggles with pitches up in the zone. There’s speed and a glove here too, though he’s better at second or third these days than short (where he’s still passable in limited time), so he makes for an interesting bench player.
OF Jonathan Rodriguez
Rodriguez has big raw power and actually doesn’t chase too bad, not like Noel, but there’s more swing and miss, and some passivity baked into the profile which has me down on his ability to actually get to most of his power. He also only offers a big arm in the outfield and no real defensive value otherwise. For me, he’s got low-end Franmil Reyes traits, which isn’t much different than Noel, but I have Noel getting to his power more often than Rodriguez due to his swing and being a passable right fielder at times, plus his ability to play first base.
RHP Dylan DeLucia
DeLucia was a real bulldog in college (except he was a Rebel, so he’d hate that comment), but he’s a strike thrower with a stocky, but strong build. It’s a solid three pitch mix with a fastball that carries well in the zone that is 89-92 right now. I’m projecting a little better of a look next year for him recovering from TJ (which I also did for Webb, but it never happened, so maybe I should learn), but he threw more strikes in college and I think his fastball has more positive traits than Webb as well, though Webb has better secondaries for me.
LHP Rafe Schlesinger
There are real quality fastball and slider traits here for Schlesinger, and I love the makeup in the profile too. He was up to 97 as a reliever, but as a starter in the ACC tournament, he was more 89-92. I’d like to believe that was due to long season fatigue, but I think the questions about his velocity holding up as a starter are fair. As a reliever, those fastball metrics and up to 97 with his slider and control would make him a dynamic reliever. I think Cleveland is going to send him out as a starter in 2025, so I’ll wait and see what that looks like. If I knew he was going out as a reliever, I might rank him higher because I see a lighter Josh Hader/Andrew Miller here at a relief ceiling, which is obviously a big time relief prospect.
RHP Cameron Sullivan
I might be too low on Sullivan here. He’s incredibly smart and high spin rates on everything. He’s up to 97 and he’s got a solid build. Like any high school arm, control and a changeup is an issue. He’s got a cross body delivery. He’s got all of the baseline tools you like, but right now it’s a big bag of tools that need assembling so a lot of risk.
RHP Justin Cambpell
Campbell had some interesting fastball metrics and two good secondaries with control. However, he’s also had two serious arm surgeries and has thrown zero pro pitches. He had medical red flags in college. He’ll be 24 before he throws a pro pitch, so it’s hard to project what a return to play looks like for Campbell. If he flashes the same stuff he had in college, then this will look very low. A healthy Campbell is a top 20 prospect.
RHP Jacob Zibin
I see why Cleveland liked Zibin enough to pay him $10M in the 10th round in 2022. There’s great, projectable physical traits here with a big fastball and potentially interesting shaped secondaries. However, he’s had two arm surgeries in two years and zero innings pitched, so I can’t bank on much here until he’s healthy. High school arms are risky enough as it is, but add in two surgeries before he’s ever pitched is even harder to project.
INF Nate Furman
Furman added some pop to his game in 2024, after having virtually none in his 2023 debut. It’s still below average power, but it’s not nothing now. He still has plus speed and a great approach at the plate. He’s limited by his second base/left field type profile, but his speed and approach give him enough chance to fill a sort of Ernie Clement role, which has plenty of value. Perhaps he could continue to take steps forward like Steven Kwan and I’ll be low here (where one time I was the high man on Furman, before he added some pop to his game even), btu Kwan did it in Double-A and Furman has been hurt since he got to Double-A, so we need to see if it works there.
RHP Franco Aleman
Coming into 2024, I had Aleman as a potential impact reliever as soon as this summer. However, health has gotten in the way, as did fluctuating velocity at times. I also saw a reduce in quality of his slider, so right now he looks more like a middle relief arm than a setup type that I felt he was in spring training.
LHP Will Dion
I bought into Dion’s secondaries, control, a fastball with good carry and what I thought would be improved velo. But the velo never took a step forward and he struggled with the long ball in Triple-A. The changeup/curve are still great offerings and his fastball does still have carry up in the zone despite going 89-91. I think that can work as like a Josh Tomlin/Ryan Merrit type role at the major league level, but maybe he’s more of a left handed Eli Morgan.
LHP Doug Nikhazy
Cleveland and Nikhazy changed his arm slot this year to a wide 3/4 look, vs. his over the top look. It took awhile to get Nikhazy to buy into some changes and it altered his signature big curve, but now he has a slider and much better control. A fastball at 90-92 that I think has lost some carry too has me still projecting him as a reliever, but he’s added a cutter and sinker. I think he could work as a depth starter with improved control.
LHP Jackson Humphries
I was much higher on Humphries initially and he’s still young and projectable, so he’s still got plenty of time to take steps forward. But at Low-A, he’s missing some bats with inconsistent control and stuff. He’s been up to 96 at points but is generally 91-93 with a good mid-70s curve at times. It’s just a lot of inconsistency so far, which points back to his control and stuff reportedly backing up a little in his senior year.
INF Jose Devers
Devers has a good glove and arm, speed and shockingly hits the ball hard for someone his size. But he looks overmatched against High-A pitching and I don’t think he’ll hit enough to be much more than a utility man. The contact and approach also don’t hold up well enough. It’s very much a speed/glove combo for me right now.
RHP Aidan Major
In 2023, Major showed better control at age 20 at West Virginia but in 2024 his control backed up possibly due to being overused by the coaching staff through an injury that led to TJs. He’s been up to 97. I don’t know if he has the size and ability to hold his velocity as a starter every five days in the pros. Perhaps the fastball traits were better in 2023, but I only have 2024 data to go off of. He might not throw a pitch until 2026 though, so he projects better as a reliever due to missed time and size, but could be an interesting one. Long wait and see here.
INF Dayan Frias
Frias has had major contact and approach issues at Double-A and the interesting traits he had in High-A have not translated. He may need more time to adjust, which is fine. He has enough arm for third and is a good defender there, but he’s more of a utility infielder that really can’t handle short, so that puts a lot of pressure on the bat.
INF Garrett Howe
Projects as a utility infielder that has contact skills and a plus approach but not much pop and a small conference, so it’s hard to say how much the bat will do in the majors. Cleveland is having some success with taking baseline contact skills and adding some pop, but Howe’s profile is going to depend on if he’ll stay at short or not.
C Bennett Thompson
Thompson is another quality approach, low pop, with potentially plus defense at a premium position. He projects as a glove first backup that can put up a decent at bat due to approach and contact rates.
OF Petey Halpin
At this point, Halpin doesn’t look like he’s going to hit enough to be a major league regular. He looks like a fourth outfielder that has some pop, plenty of speed, arm and can fill all three outfield spots but might strikeout a bunch.
OF/INF Jake Fox
Fox was taking steps forward as an outfielder and a hitter at the end of 2023, but he has repeated High-A in 2024 and the offense didn’t carry over. He still has a decent approach at the plate and I think there’s value there as someone who can play second and three outfield spots if he can find the offense from the end of 2023.
RHP Trenton Denholm
Denholm continues to show some solid traits as a starter. He hasn’t been able to hold his velocity all that well, where he’s been 95 before, but is mostly 91-93. The changeup looks to be above average and his cutter/curve are fringe offerings. It’s control over command but I think in a relief role, which is more suitable to his size, would help his fastball. Another Eli Morgan type up and down arm with two pitches and control.
1B Luis Merejo
Merejo had good data in the DSL last year and has struck out a bit more in the ACL, but there’s pop as a corner type here that’s fun to project on but the approach may be a concern like Jose Pirela, who I also liked coming into the year, but there was too much swing and miss to put him here over Merejo, even if Pirela might play center and Merejo is a 1B/3B type.
Note, I do not rank DSL players if I don’t have data/video on them, and I don’t want to just go on other people’s scouting reports so you won’t see Robert Arias or Gabriel Rodriguez here, though they project as top-30 talents. DSL data is even more unreliable than ACL, at least surface level data.