Updated Guardians Top 30 prospects list has new No. 1.
CLEVELAND — The Guardians already felt confident in their farm system, but now, they have the proof that they should be puffing out their chests a little bit.
In MLB Pipeline’s newest prospect rankings, Cleveland has six players ranked in the Top 100 across all Major League farm systems. And of course, the first No. 1 overall Draft pick in franchise history is leading the way.
Team Top 30 Prospects lists:
ALE: BAL | BOS | NYY | TB | TOR
ALC: CLE | CWS | DET | KC | MIN
ALW: HOU | LAA | OAK | SEA | TEX
NLE: ATL | MIA | NYM | PHI | WSH
NLC: CHC | CIN | MIL | PIT | STL
NLW: AZ | COL | LAD | SD | SF
Travis Bazzana comes in as the Guardians’ new top prospect and No. 13 in all of baseball. He made his professional debut on July 26 with High-A Lake County and launched a grand slam as his first long ball in just his third game.
Travis Bazzana’s first pro HR is grand.
But Cleveland is taking it slow with its top prospect. The club let Bazzana settle in for the first two weeks before playing him on consecutive days. His first nine games only resulted in a .156 average and a .638 OPS, but that doesn’t have anyone in this organization worried. Cleveland knows his potential.
Complete Top 30 list »
Yes, that moves Chase DeLauter, who has battled injuries all year yet again, to the No. 2 spot on Cleveland’s Top 30 list (No. 42 overall). It was especially disappointing because he had such an elite showing during his time in big league camp during Spring Training, but again, the Guardians aren’t concerned. As long as he can stay healthy, DeLauter’s ceiling is still sky high. He was finally activated off the injured list for the second time this season on July 27 and through his first six games in August, he hit .286 with a .796 OPS.
From there, the list saw a handful more changes. Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about the Guardians’ new Top 30 prospects list, including six new names.
Here’s a look at the Guardians top prospects:
- Travis Bazzana, 2B (No. 13 overall)
- Chase DeLauter, OF (No. 42)
- Kyle Manzardo, 1B (No. 52)
- Jaison Chourio, OF (No. 70)
- Ralphy Velazquez, 1B (No. 77)Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the preseason list:
- Jump: C.J. Kayfus, 1B (Preseason: Unranked | Midseason: No. 7) — Kayfus went from third-round Draft pick in 2023 to a must-see prospect by the middle of ’24. Through his first 40 games this year, he hit .338 with a 1.015 OPS in High-A Lake County, which demanded a promotion to Double-A Akron. He’s at least shown he’s human in Akron, hitting .284 in his first 47 games, but he still boasted a .906 OPS after hitting eight homers with 10 doubles and three triples in that span.
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- Fall: Kahlil Watson, SS (Preseason: No. 16 | Midseason: No. 30) — Watson was part of the deal that sent Josh Bell to Miami at last year’s Trade Deadline. So far this year, he hasn’t done much to stand out. In his first 73 games with Double-A Akron, he hit .213 with a .709 OPS and 14 homers, but also 98 strikeouts.
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New to the list
Here are the players added to the Top 30 from outside the organization:
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No. 1, Travis Bazzana, 2B (No. 1 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft)
No. 9, Braylon Doughty, RHP (Competitive Balance Round selection, No. 36 overall)
No. 13, Jacob Cozart, C (Second-round pick, No. 48 overall)
No. 16, Joey Oakie, RHP (Third-round pick, No. 84 overall)
No. 19, Chase Mobley, RHP (10th-round pick, No. 295 overall)
No. 25, Cameron Sullivan, RHP (Seventh-round pick, No. 205 overall)Best tools
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Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools — 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is above average and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.
Hit: 70 — Travis Bazzana
Power: 60 — Chase DeLauter
Run: 60 — Travis Bazzana (Jake Fox, Kahlil Watson)
Arm: 60 — Johnathan Rodriguez (Chase DeLauter, Kahlil Watson)
Defense: 55 — Jake Fox (Robert Arias, Jaison Chourio, Jacob Cozart, Chase DeLauter, Angel Genao, Petey Halpin, C,J. Kayfus, Angel Martínez) -
Fastball: 80 — Daniel Espino
Curveball: 60 — Ryan Webb
Slider: 70 — Daniel Espino
Changeup: 60 — Parker Messick (Joey Cantillo)
Control: 55 — Parker Messick
