For a system that typically filled with 50's and 55's, this year is considered a "down" year for the Cleveland Guardians, with "only" 6 50's. Those 50's come with varying degrees of risk and upside. Kyle Manzardo had a challenging season with his mother's health weighing in the background, but when he is at his best, he possesses one of the best hit tools in the upper minors, with a knack for making solid contact with the ball. Chase DeLauter has the highest upside of the bunch, but he has faced numerous health issues, so durability is a concern, despite his plus power. Last time we saw Daniel Espino healthy, he was one of the game's premier pitching prospects. However, he underwent shoulder surgery early in the 2023 season, which will sideline him for a chunk of 2024. Further down the system, you'll find the typical high-contact, low-power middle infielders that you've come to expect with the Guardians, such as Welbyn Francisco and Brayan Rocchio. Additionally, the Guardians have several intriguing pitchers who will rejuvenate their rotation as their current starters become too expensive, for Guardians standards. The draft brought in one of the top prep hitters in the 2023 class, Ralphy Velazquez, but it's still uncertain whether he will remain as a catcher. The Guardians made a deliberate effort to acquire more power from their prospects through trades and the draft this season, and this is apparent at every level of the farm system. The Guardians are one of the premier scouting organizations in baseball, known for discovering talents like Juan Brito from other teams who have yet to be optimized. Overall, this is a strong farm system, but they do not have one of the top 10-15 prospects in the game in their system. The Guardians were fortunate to secure the top pick in the 2024 draft, which will further strengthen their already robust farm system.
About Our Top 30 Lists
Prospects Live, led by its evaluating team, is proud to begin rolling out its annual offseason system reports. The team has meticulously worked on every detail in this list and all future teams, sparing no effort as we combine industry feedback, our live looks, film, and available data to compile each org. We believe this effort has enabled us to present you, the reader, with our best possible list.
We have constructed this list using the Overall Future Potential (OFP) scale. There is no perfect equation for ranking prospects or assigning value to them, but we believe this method is the best possible approach. Every prospect on this list has been graded based on the tried and true 20-80 scouting scale. An 80 is the highest tool and OFP grade on the scale, reserved for MVP-caliber players or tools. Conversely, a 20 is reserved for non-prospects (NPs). A 50 OFP falls in the middle, indicating our evaluators deem this player a future average major league player. Below the 50 OFP tier are the 45s and 40s, comprising a large majority of players on each list. These are specific-role players, such as platoon hitters, utility players, or low-leverage relievers. Above the 50 OFP tier are the 55s and 60s. A 55 represents a future above-average player, and a 60 OFP designation is reserved for future All-Star caliber players.
In addition to the tool grades and OFP, we will also include a 'Risk' associated with each prospect. We use this to better communicate to you, the reader, whether a grade is more aggressive or conservative in nature. The evaluation team has worked painstakingly to apply both the grades and risk components to better illustrate how each individual prospect stacks up in their respective system and in the baseball ecosystem.
This year, we decided to accompany the scouting reports with dynasty commentary on each, as well as quick reference to the player's Top 500 fantasy prospect rank (top 1000 dynasty rank coming soon), PLIVE+ metrics and Jordan Rosenblum's peak projections. The PLIVE+ rank noted is the rank among hitters, starters or relievers.
Below you'll find the top 10 players in the system with full reports of the top 5. The full rankings and reports on all top 30 prospects per team will be available on our Patreon at the 55-tier ($5 level) as we publish them. If you're into fantasy baseball, this tier also gets you the dynasty show, the FYPD list, and the MiLB Daily Sheet during the regular season.
Top 10 Team Rank and First 5 Reports for Free Below
1. Kyle Manzardo, 1B - 50 OFP
Age: 23 Highest Level: AAA
2023 Pre-season Rank: 3 (TB) OFP: 55
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 19
| Hit | Power | Field | Arm | Run | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 50 | 50 | 40 | 30 | Mod |
Report Kyle Manzardo came over to Cleveland in a deal for pitcher Aaron Civale. His first year in the minors he dominated the lower minors. This past season he was focused on tapping into more power. He was successful and raised his 90th percentile exit velocity and his overall exit velocity while lowering his groundball rate. He did this while dealing with a shoulder injury, which might have limited those numbers. One could better see his abilities as he got healthy late in the year and hit six home runs over the final week and a half of the minor league season. He is a smart adaptable hitter. One can see this just looking at his split data this year. When he played in Durham he became more of an extreme pull hitter, with over 50% of his hits being pulled to the shortest part of the park. He gets to Columbus and drops the pull percentage 14%, hitting 10% more to the opposite field which is where the short porch is in Columbus. His ability as a hitter is among the best in the minors. He has shown the ability to work the zone which should make him a top of the lineup on-base threat. While he might never challenge for a home run title, he should be able to hit 20 home runs a year and maybe more as there is room for him to get stronger. He is strictly a first baseman, though he should be an average defender there. The overall profile points to a top of the lineup bat one who could break camp with Cleveland in 2024. - Jeff Ellis
Fantasy Outlook Manzardo seemingly took several steps backwards in 2023. His .236/.337/.464 slash line is nowhere near his career minor league .329/.429/.615 line coming into the season. No need to fear Manzardo owners, the surface stats tell us one story, the underlying numbers tell us another. His BABIP was nearly 100 points lower than normal, leading us to believe a combination of bad luck and lower exit velocities were the main culprits. His contact rate (86.5 zone contact) and exit velocity numbers (106 mph 90th percentile EV) look very similar to previous seasons. After the trade from Tampa Bay to Cleveland and into the Arizona Fall League he started to slug like the Manzardo we know and love (.590 in 21 games at Columbus, .672 in the AFL). He’s an elite 1B option for fantasy and if your league-mates have lost some faith and you can get Manzardo at a discount, jump on the opportunity. - Greg Hoogkamp
2. Chase DeLauter, OF - 50 OFP
Age: 22 Highest Level: AA
2023 Pre-season Rank: 7 OFP: 50
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 45
| Hit | Power | Field | Arm | Run | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 60 | 50 | 60 | 45 | Mod |
Report Three things can sum up Chase DeLauter’s baseball career so far. Availability, performance, and doubt. DeLauter faced a foot injury in college that delayed the start of his pro career until the second half of 2024. Despite his recent injury history, when DeLauter is on the field, the results are undeniable. Based on where he played his college ball and his awkward looking swing, people have doubted how good DeLauter can be. He looks the size of a middle of the order hitter. DeLauter does have an unusual swing, using a scissor kick with his back foot that helps clear his hips and gets him out front on heat and is supposed to give him the ability to delay his swing to adjust to spin. The finish on his swing is often truncated and looks like he’s cutting himself off. But it doesn’t stop him from being able to drive the ball and loft it. The swing does cause him to roll over at times, but also mishit balls that end up being singles the other way that he could drive. That will be his question going forward if this will work against better pitching and he can truly hold off on breaking stuff and avoid cheating on heat. In the field, DeLauter has gotten plenty of reps in center but will probably profile better in a corner and should have enough arm to play in right. DeLauter is an average runner. He should start 2024 in Double-A. Cleveland is very conservative with promotions, but DeLauter could force a debut. - Justin Lada
Fantasy Outlook DeLauter ranked 45th on our end of season fantasy list and it’s an impressive accomplishment considering how little he’s been on the field. This speaks to the true talent this young man possesses. He manages the strike zone extremely well, walking (8.3 BB%) nearly as much as he strikes out (12.2 K%). After his AFL experience this season (.914 OPS) he should be ready to take on the upper minors and even push for an opportunity at the major leagues in 2024. Your opportunity to grab DeLauter for any sort of a discount is about to close if it hasn’t already. - Greg Hoogkamp
3. Daniel Espino, RHP - 50 OFP
Age: 23 Highest Level: AA
2023 MLB Draft Rank Rank: 2 OFP: 55
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 167
| Fastball | Curveball | Slider | Changeup | Command | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | 55 | 60 | 45 | 45 | Extreme |
Report Espino is a physical specimen for being short in stature for a starting pitcher. Generously listed at 6-foot-2, Espino has a thick lower half with tree trunk thighs and a powerful midsection. He has crafted his body to maintain his strength in his lower half and maximize his mobility and movement. The soon-to-be-23-year-old is a tireless worker that relies on a rigorous stretching routine to maintain his flexibility, which is crucial to his delivery and velocity. However, that strength, athleticism, and flexibility could not save Espino from a serious shoulder injury. One month into his 2022 season, Espino suffered knee soreness which kept him out for months. While injured, Espino then suffered a shoulder injury that kept him out most of 2022. In spring training of 2023, he needed shoulder surgery to repair his right anterior capsule and sidelined him for all of 2023. He will likely continue to rehab from that surgery in 2024, hoping to return to action sometime in the summer. When healthy, Espino does have a repeatable, athletic delivery that features a high 3/4 arm slot and wicked fastball velocity, touching 101-102, sitting 95-99 with life and ride. He pairs that with an elite, tight slider. His firm changeup shows promise but needs some refinement, but with repetition, wouldn’t be far away from an average pitch. His curveball is his third option, showing a lot of slower, vertical break that can really give hitters a different look. The bust rate for Espino was incredibly high before this surgery and is at an all-time high now. On talent alone, Espino has ace or high-end closer upside. But it’s unknown what the effects of surgery will have on his velocity and stuff and if he can hold up over a full season. - Justin Lada
Fantasy Outlook When Spring Training rolls around it will have been nearly two full years since Espino pitched in a competitive game. When he’s healthy, there’s legitimate SP1 upside. Espino, has a career 34.4 K% in the minor leagues. Combine this with an 8.2 BB% and we are talking rare air, elite of the elite stuff when you consider his arsenal. His future will come down to health, which at this point, is a mystery. We haven’t heard much at all about his recovery and to cast more doubt on the situation, it was a shoulder surgery which doesn't have the same success rates that Tommy John surgeries do. It’s possible he’s not rostered in smaller leagues, in which case it would be a good play to pick him up. He might also be a sneaky trade throw in if his owner needs to free up a roster spot. It depends on your team's situation, but he could be a huge wild card if you’re willing to take the risk. - Greg Hoogkamp
4. Ralphy Velazquez, C/1B - 50 OFP
Age: 18 Highest Level: CPX
2023 MLB Draft Rank: 45
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 319
| Hit | Power | Field | Arm | Run | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 60 | 45 | 50 | 40 | High |
Report The Guardians need offense and they got some with their first round pick in 2023. Widely considered the best prep bat in Southern California, Velazquez is a very physical presence. He split time at catcher and first base in high school but is likely a first baseman long term. Extremely strong lower half and broad shoulders, he uses his lower half and a compact powerful swing to generate tons of power, his best tool. He has an advanced approach to the plate and can handle velocity as well as good breaking balls, he continuously performed against top level competition. All fields power that grades as at least plus in game, and double plus raw but has the type of offensive ceiling to someday reach his raw in game. The question mark is that you rarely see bodies that are this physically mature at such a young age, so there isn’t a ton of room to grow, maybe even slim down a bit. As a catcher he’s a bit stiff receiving and the blocking needs work but has the arm he could stick, the belief is to save the legs and let him rake at first. - Cameron Emamian
Fantasy Outlook An 18-year-old catcher who’s already facing some questions about position and body makes it hard to get excited about the potential 25 HR power. Check back in in a year to see how the contact abilities shake out and what position Cleveland has him playing. - Eddy Almaguer
5. Brayan Rocchio, SS - 50 OFP
Age: 23 Highest Level: MLB
2023 Pre-season Rank: 5 OFP: 50
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 127
| Hit | Power | Field | Arm | Run | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 40 | 55 | 50 | 50 | Mod |
Report Brayan Rocchio is one of many members of the Guardians’ vaunted 2017 international class that will appear in these rankings. He has moved steadily through the minors, providing above league average offense as well as playing a solid shortstop. He’s a well-rounded player with no standout tool and Cleveland has seemed hesitant to anoint him their next shortstop. His first taste in the big leagues went poorly. While that may have been expected with the bat, he also had uncharacteristic issues in the field. Rocchio needs to get back to high contact, low strikeouts, and mixing in walks. He played in a very home-run-friendly stadium, in AAA, and had some of the worst power numbers of his career. Power isn’t part of his game, so the high chase and whiff rates are not sustainable. Rocchio has always been known for his smarts, approach, and general patience. He is a bit limited athletically relative to other up-the-middle types. The door is not shut on him being an above-league-average bat, and league-average defender at short. That is a very valuable player and now is his time to display the skills. - Jeff Ellis
Fantasy Outlook In June 2023, Rocchio peaked in our fantasy rankings, hovering around the 60s. To close out the year, he fell to outside 120. Though we like the increase in walk rate in Triple-A relative to career norms, his ability to impact the ball has been less than anticipated, hovering below major league average EV. An infielder who has to work to merely cross double-digit home runs and steals is not terribly appealing in fantasy. We recognize he’ll be 23 for all of 2024 so there’s plenty of time to recoup value, but the ceiling is pretty low for now. - Eddy Almaguer
6. Welbyn Francisca, SS - 50 OFP
Age: 17 Highest Level: DSL
2023 INT Signing Rank: 21
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 194
7. Juan Brito, 2B - 45 OFP
Age: 22 Highest Level: AAA
2023 Pre-season Rank: 4 OFP: 50
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 158
8. Jaison Chourio, OF - 45 OFP
Age: 18 Highest Level: A
2023 Pre-season Rank: 22 OFP: 40
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 238
9. George Valera, OF - 45 OFP
Age: 23 Highest Level: AAA
2023 Pre-season Rank: 6 OFP: 50
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 209
10. Alex Clemmey, LHP - 45 OFP
Age: 18 Highest Level: HS
2023 MLB Draft Rank: 40
Dynasty Prospect Rank: 326