The division reports debuted last year. The goal of this article series is to provide a quick overview of all dynasty-relevant information from each division. Each team has multiple minor league levels, each containing plenty of impactful prospects, which can feel impossible to keep up with. This article series, which will be updated once per month, will help dynasty managers stay up-to-date on performances, injuries, promotions, and more. New this season is the inclusion of tiers in the rankings. Next to their rank, each prospect is assigned a tier. The tier range is 1-5.
- Tier 1: A potential difference-making dynasty prospect. Somebody who would rank in the top-20ish prospects for dynasty baseball
- Tier 2: A still very good dynasty prospect who holds plenty of value. This prospect would typically rank in the 21-75 range
- Tier 3: A mid-tier prospect who could be valuable but has questions and concerns present in his profile, ranking in the 76-150 range
- Tier 4: A prospect who is worth knowing, but is reserved for deeper leagues. This prospect would rank 151-250
- Tier 5: The rest of the prospects fall into Tier
With only a few weeks left in the Minor League seasons, we’re checking in on where each of the top 10 prospects in the Cleveland Guardians system is expected to end the year and what their outlook can be for the 2026 season.
Top 10 Prospects
Notable Prospect Performances:
- The younger of the two Chourio brothers, Jaison Chourio, has had a season with some setbacks, but he’s been on the upswing to finish the season strong. Since August 1, Chourio has had a .295/.379/.361 slash line with one home run, 15 RBI, two stolen bases, a 20.7% strikeout rate, and 11.4% walk rate. Chourio missed a month of games in May to early June due to a right shoulder strain, and he was still building his strength back up in June and July when he was hitting .172 over 122 plate appearances. With his average now nearly .300 in the last 30 games, his strength is back to where it was in the spring. Chouiro is still only at High-A and not on the same fast track to the Majors his brother was on with the Brewers just a couple of years ago. Jaison Chourio will not be 21 years old until May 19, and by that time next year could easily be in Double-A. He may not be playing in the Majors until 2027, but a strong finish in High-A this year can certainly turn heads on his prospect elevation next year.
- Cooper Ingle was tearing things up at the plate in Double-A Akron, but it has not been the same story for him since he was promoted to Triple-A Columbus alongside Travis Bazzana on August 11. Over his first 19 games with the Clippers, Ingle has a .190/.377/.310 slash line with just one home run and five RBI. His saving grace has been drawing more walks (16) than strikeouts (12), as his 20.8% walk rate has helped elevate his on-base percentage into the upper echelon of Triple-A. Ingle has caught 13 of the 19 games he’s played at Triple-A so far, still setting him up as the Guardians catcher of the future. With how he’s performed so far and just two weeks left to go in the Triple-A season, it’s unlikely Ingle gets promoted to the Majors this season, but a strong end to the year could set him up for a chance to crack the Guardians Opening Day roster next spring.
- C.J. Kayfus was off to a decent start in the Majors after he joined the Guardians on August 2 for his MLB debut. Through his first 17 games, Kayfus put up a .245/.298/.472 slash line with a couple of home runs and eight RBI. But over his last 12 games, he’s been anything but successful at the plate, going only 3-for-31 with two of his hits going for doubles. Kayfus is striking out a lot and having poor contact, posting a BABIP of .136 in that span. While Kayfus mainly played in right field over his first 17 games, he’s seeing more time split between first base and right field in the last 12 games. It may not be the main contributing factor to his slump, but many pitchers across the league are catching up to him, and he will have to make some adjustments in order to get his numbers into a good place for the final three weeks of the season.
Notable Prospect News and Promotions:
- Even though he had to battle through injuries this year and saw his playing time significantly limited, Travis Bazzana has still made it to Triple-A just a year after he was taken first overall in the 2024 MLB Draft. Bazanna was promoted to Triple-A Columbus on August 11 and has played in 23 games with the Clippers since his call-up. While he had a slight adjustment period over his first week there, his power has looked as good as it has been all season since joining the Clippers, as he has a season-high .481 slugging percentage and .916 OPS in 109 plate appearances. The numbers are all the more impressive since last Thursday, September 4, when he went 3-for-4 and hit his first walk-off homer with the Clippers to give them a 5-3 win over Indianapolis. While Bazzana has looked much better since healing from the oblique strain, it’s still questionable whether the Guardians will promote their top prospect up to the Majors for his MLB debut before the season is over. Either way, Bazzana will be well within the Guardians’ Opening Day plans for 2026, barring any injuries, and that should make him a top 20 second baseman for dynasty players to have on their lists for next season.
- Ralphy Velazquez earned himself a promotion to Double-A Akron after Bazanna and Ingle were moved up to Triple-A Columbus on August 11. Velazquez had his troubles at High-A this season, hitting just .191 in 42 games between April and May, but as the season has gone on, he’s heated up, and things have been the best for him at Double-A. He’s posted an impressive .341/.434/.647 slash line with five home runs, 15 RBI, a 12.1% walk rate, and 15.2% strikeout rate stretching over 99 plate appearances in 22 games. It’s an encouraging turn around for the Guardians’ first-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, and if Velazquez can keep his hot streak going over the last week of the Double-A season, he can set himself up well for an MLB debut in mid to late 2026 with the Guardians.
