The Cleveland Guardians need offensive help as they battle for a spot in the American League playoffs. They seemingly have an entire platoon of power hitters so near and – for now – so far away in the minor leagues.
The group should give hope to Guardians fans, though Clevelanders are weary of hearing half-empty promises of hope. It has been 78 years since the city won a World Series and the 2026 team is in jeopardy of not finishing above .500 for the 41st time during that title drought.
Some ever-optimistic souls see the Guardians’ 2026 glass as half full. Cleveland is currently tied for a wild-card berth in the AL, where 11 of 15 teams have losing records. The Guardians, Houston Astros and Texas Rangers are all 65-66. Five other clubs are within 3 1/2 games of that trio.
That the Guardians are in a playoff push at all is due to manager Steven Vogt’s masterful manipulation of an overworked pitching staff. Every game is a tense tussle due to the Guardians’ lack of offense. Cleveland relief pitchers have worked a total of 449 times, tied with the Athletics (51-80) for fourth most in MLB.
The good news is that Guardians starters and relievers have allowed 536 runs, seventh fewest among MLB’s 30 teams. The bad news? Cleveland is 26th overall with 527 runs. That’s a minus-nine total over 131 games with 31 to play.
The Guardians’ 123 homers rank 29th and 1,614 total bases are a dead-last 30th.
Rookie Chase DeLauter, Rhys Hoskins and Kyle Manzardo share the team lead in homers with a paltry 13. Manzardo is back at Triple-A Columbus. A year ago, he spent all season in Cleveland and had 27 homers.
Travis Bazzana, the first overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, has provided spark. He has 9 homers, 16 doubles and 18 stolen bases since being called up in late April.
The sample size is large enough to assume Cleveland’s lineup is not suddenly going to rise up and bash baseballs everywhere. These Guardians will scrap, scrape and scratch for a possible playoff chance, perhaps providing some excitement.
Cleveland does have some minor-leaguers producing runs, however. Three of them got to Cleveland briefly and maybe one or two more will get a late-season call.
Briefly In Cleveland
Three positions players hitting well at Columbus got callups. Cooper Ingle and Kahlil Watson were sent back, while Angel Genao remains in Cleveland. Here’s their 2026 offensive totals:
Genao, age 22, SS-3B-2B, bats-both, throws-right, 5-foot-11, 150 pounds, international signing from Dominican Republic in 2021 for $1.175 million. 2026 AA/AAA: 96 games 13 homers, 53 RBI, 11 steals, .300/.401/.474; 2026 MLB: 1 homer, 3 RBI, 1 steal, .288/.344/.390
Ingle, 24, C-LF, bats-L, throws-R, 5-8, 190, 4th-round pick in 2023 from Clemson, signed for $400,000. 2026 AAA: 83 games, 18 homers, 61 RBI, .306/.434/.555. 2026 MLB: 7 games, 2 RBI, .095/.208/.095
Watson, 23, OF-SS-2B, bats-L, throws-R, 5-9, 178, 1st-round pick in 2021 out of high school by Miami Marlins, signed for $4,540,790. 2026 AAA: 79 games, 16 homers, 50 RBI, 21 steals, .250/.370/.469 2026 MLB: 27 games, 1 homer, 11 RBI, 9-for-10 SB, .239/.264/.341
Still In Columbus
The player blazing towards Cleveland is Ralphy Velazquez. He has hit 16 homers in his last 21 games, 14 in August, and his torrid bat could be called up in September.
Drafted as a catcher, Velazquez has become very good around the first-base bag. He has worked hard on defense there and in the outfield while doing what he does best – pounding baseballs over the fence.
Alfonsin Rosario is a power-speed outfielder acquired from the Chicago Cubs after the 2024 season for reliever Eli Morgan. Rosario still chases too many pitches out of the strike zone. When he is selective at the plate, he’s a dangerous hitter.
Kody Huff, acquired from the Colorado Rockies for pitcher Cal Quantrill after the 2023 season, is considered solid defensively and has added some offense.
Velazquez, 21, 1B-OF, B-L, T-R, 6-1, 240, 1st-round pick in 2023 out of high school signed for $2.5 million. AA/AAA: 27 homers, 80 RBI, .293/.380/.562
Rosario, 22, OF, B-R, T-R, 6-0, 222, 6th-round in 2023 by Cubs out of high school ($325,500). 2026 AA/AAA: 17 homers, 58 RBI 15-for-15 steals, .246/.328/.499
Huff, 25, C-1B-3B, B-R, T-R, 5-9, 198, 7th round 2022 from Stanfordf by Rockies ($231,600). AAA: 19 homers, 68 RBI, 12 steals, .259/.377/.509.
Earning A’s At Akron
This group is on fire and represents a change in strategy back to what made Cleveland dominate the AL Central in the 1990s and and get to the World Series in 1995 and 1997. Bashers Albert Belle, Jim Thome, Manny Ramirez, Richie Sexson, Brian Giles and others came up through the system.
Cleveland got back to the World Series in 2016, sparked by fleet Francisco Lindor, Jose Ramirez and Rajai Davis supporting a strong pitching staff. So the team kept drafting similar players. Pitchers like Shane Bieber, Gavin Williams, Parker Messick and Cade Smith thrived. The hitters … not so much.
So the Guardians gave big bucks to big boys with big swings. Right now, they look great, hitting majestically high homers everywhere. We’ll see how they handle better breaking balls and changeups at advanced levels. But for 2026:
Ryan Cesarini, 23, OF, B-L, T-R, 5-10, 211, 14th-round in 2024 from St. Joseph’s (PA) signed for $150,000. High A/AA: 18 homers, 47 RBI, 16-for-17 steals, .309/.376/.610.
Dean Curley, 22, SS-3B, B-R, T-R, 6-4, 230, 2nd round 2025 from Tennessee ($1,733,905). High A/AA: 15 homers, 72 RBI, 12 steals, .259/.432/.454.
Nolan Schubart, 22, 1B-OF, B-L, T-R, 6-4, 227, 3rd round 2025 from Oklahoma State ($730,000). High A/AA: 28 homers, 93 RBI, .259/.410/.542.
Aaron Walton, 22, OF, B-R, T-R, 6-4, 218, 2nd round 2025 from Arizona ($1.1 million). High A/AA: 18 HR, 71 RBI, 28-for-31 SB, .266/.392/.481.
Jace LaViolette, 22, OF, B-L, T-L, 6-6, 228, 1st round 2025 from Texas A&M ($4 million). High A/AA: 21 HR, 75 RBI, 14-for-16 SB, .230/.339/.457.
Jaison Chourio, 21, OF, B-B, T-R, 6-0, 194, brother of Brewers star Jackson Chourio, from Venezuela 2022 ($1.2 million). High A/AA: 9 HR, 45 RBI, 33-for-42 SB, .267/.371/.408
On The Radar
Welbyn Francisca, 20, SS-2B, B-B, T-R, 5-8, 148, Dominican Republic 2023 ($1.375 million). Rookie/High A: 16 HR, 44 RBI, 13-for-15 SB, .280/.383/.543.
Juneiker Caceres, 19, OF, B-L, T-L. 5-10, 168, Venezuela 2024 ($350,000). Low A/High A: 11 homers, 49 RBI, .298/.403/.492.
Luis De La Cruz, 19, 1B-3B-OF, B-B, T-R, 5-11, 166, Dominican Republic 2024 ($420,000). Low A/High A: 11 HR, 61 RBI, 36-for-48 SB, .291/.371/.474.
Dauri Fernandez, 19, 2B-3B, B-B, T-R, 5-9, 155, Dominican Republic 2024 ($215,000). Low A/High A: 4 HR, 44 RBI, 51-for-67 SB, .268/.339/.398
Cleveland Guardians’ Future
The last month of the 2026 regular season promising to be exciting for Cleveland and many teams in the running for the playoffs. If you are one of the six clubs in each league to make it, you still have a chance to win it all.
Cleveland’s better outlook is indeed for the future. The Guardians continued to pile up pitching – 89 of 126 draft picks since 2022 have been pitchers – to go with these promising power bats and other international signings.
The Cleveland Guardians’ future, which was only a distant dream in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, appears to be ready to shine as brightly as it did in the dominating 1990s.