Cleveland Guardians Prospect Report 5/8/2025
Big nights from Ralphy Velazuqez, Travis Bazzana and CJ Kayfus handles RF
Scoreboard
Indianapolis Indians 4, Columbus Clippers 3 (Statcast)
Akron RubberDucks 5, Somerset Patriots 0
Lake County Captains 9, Quad Cities River Bandits 0
Lynchburg Hillcats 7, Fredericksburg Nationals 2
ACL Guardians 7, ACL Diamondbacks 3
Highlights
CJ Kayfus (RF, Columbus): 1-4, 2B, BB, 2K - Kayfus struck out looking twice but did add another extra base hit. He also drew a walk and notably was in right field again and actually ended up making a nice catch out there.
Kody Huff (C, Columbus): 1-3, 2B, BB - Huff’s double was a grounder hit 94 off the bat. He also drew a walk and had a groundout at 106.8. I think Huff has good exit velocities but its clear he probably needs a swing adjustment to take better advantage of it. He got off to a good start in Double-A last year and hasn’t had the same start in Triple-A this year, but he’s still at a good point for the level and catchers develop slower. And really the bat isn’t what will carry him to the majors, it’s his defense. But there is the ability to hit the ball hard in there.
Travis Bazzana (2B, Akron): 3-5, 2B - Just the second three hit game of the year for Bazzana, his first since the second game of the year when he had four hits. Don’t look now, but Bazzana is slashing .310/.333/.517 in May. He does have eight strikeouts and just one walk, but the hitting has started to tick up finally.
Ralphy Velazquez (1B, Lake County): 3-4, 2 2B, 3B - By far the best game of Ralphy’s season in Lake County and maybe in High-A in general going back to last year. He pulled the ball to the gap with authority all game after missing a few games and it was a really encouraging performance.
Josh Hartle (SP, Lake County): 5IP, 4H, 6K - This was by far Hartle’s best start of the season and looked more like the pitcher who was projected to be a first round pick last season. He didn’t walk anyone and missed bats and was in control all night.
Dauri Fernandez (3B, ACL Guardians): 3-4, 2B - The 18 year old switch hitter had an impressive night in Arizona and now has seven hits in his first five games out there.
Tyler Thornton (RP, ACL Guardians): 1IP, 4K - Thornton, the 24 year old reliever is rehabbing in Arizona and had a rare four strikeout inning after a throwing error on the catcher.
Notable Performances
Kahlil Watson (CF, Akron): 1-4, 2B, 2 RBI - Watson doubled home Bazzana to open the scoring in Akron but ended up being replaced later in the game by Jake Fox in centerfield, so we’ll see if something is up with Watson. Hopefully he's OK because he’s gotten off to a decent start.
Dayan Frias (1B-3B, Akron): 2-4, 2B - Frias has had his moments so far this year but has overall been inconsistent. He hasn’t quite been able to replicate his success in High-A from 2023.
Rodney Boone (SP, Akron): 4.1IP, 4H, 2H, 3K - Boone didn’t miss as many bats this game as he has in the past starts but he’s been pretty good this year. He is 26 in Double-A and still throws 88-90 so it’s hard to project much here, but he’s pitched well.
Alfonsin Rosario (DH, Lake County): 1-3, 2B, K - Rosario had a 13 pitch at bat in this game where he ended up flying out hard to center field and then later doubled down the left field line and got to third on an error, but had enough speed to get there on his own. He’s continued to handle High-A pitching quite well.
Welbyn Francisca (SS, Lynchburg): 1-5, 3B, RBI - Francisca has had a tough start in Low-A but has had good days here and there.
Melkis Hernandez (SP, Lynchburg): 5IP, 4H, 2BB, 6K - The 20 year old lefty has made six starts this year and has gotten into the fifth in half of them, which means he’s been pretty solidly efficient for his age and level, something you don’t see much of at that point.