As we continue our coverage of the upcoming 2026 MLB draft, which begins at 1 p.m. Saturday, I’ll be reviewing the last four Cleveland Guardians drafts, which have added considerable depth to their minor league system.
Just FYI, the age listed below is the age of the players when they were drafted just about three year ago, so just add three years for their current age.
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1 (23). Ralphy Velazquez. 1B/LHH. Age 18. $2.5M bonus.
Velazquez was a standout prep catcher from California. Here’s what senior vice president of scouting Paul Gillispie had to say about him after Cleveland made him their first-round selection:
“Ralphy was really a mainstay on the summer showcase circuit, and really stands out for his bat and ability to control the strike zone. He has a really impressive track record of success at Huntington Beach High School, and some of the best high school baseball competition in the country.”
Velazquez has hit at every level, representing Cleveland twice in the MLB Futures Game. He broke out in a big way in 2025, slashing a ridiculous .330/.405/.589 at Double-A, good for a 188 wRC+. He repeated this year at Double-A and continued to rake, earning a promotion to Triple-A, where he has come a bit back down to Earth, although still has been above average with a .278/.358/.417 slash across 37 games with Columbus. Velazquez could make his MLB debut this season, and definitely will help Cleveland in 2027 and beyond as one of MLB’s top hitting prospects.
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2 (58). Alex Clemmey. LHP. Age 17. $2.3M bonus.
An intriguing southpaw prep arm out of the Northeast, Cleveland took a shot on Clemmey with its second round pick. Here’s what Gillispie had to say on draft day:
“The thing about Alex is not only is his work ethic sort of off the charts, but he has a really good understanding for not only his body and his delivery, but also especially for a high school kid, a really advanced understanding of pitch design.”
Cleveland aggressively moved Clemmey to full-season Lynchburg for the 2024 season for his pro debut. After a feeling-out process, Clemmey blossomed and appeared to be well on his way to becoming another top pitching prospect in Cleveland’s system, but he was unfortunately traded to Washington in the Lane Thomas deal. He’s struggled a bit at Double-A this year and currently is listed as Washington’s No. 12 prospect.
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3 (62). Andrew Walters. RHP. Age 22. $960K bonus.
Walters was a second-round competitive balance pick out of Miami, one of the top bullpen arms in the 2023 draft with one of the nastiest fastballs (Fangraphs gives it a 70 grade). Cleveland was extremely aggressive with Walters and he ended up making his MLB debut in 2024, where he looked like he might become the next big thing after posting a 0.00 ERA over nine appearances and 8.2 innings pitched for the Guardians.
Unfortunately, injuries and illness have set Walters’ career back dramatically. He pitched just 1.1 innings at MLB in 2025 before tearing his lat and requiring season-ending surgery. A viral illness delayed the start of his 2026 season and he’s struggled to a 7.30 ERA over 14 appearances at Triple-A, although he’s striking out an elite 16.8 batters per nine innings in the process.
4 (93). C.J. Kayfus. 1B/LHH. Age 21. $700K bonus.
A first base prospect out of Miami, Kayfus looked like the next big thing. He dominated MiLB in 2024, posting a 160 wRC+ over High-A and Double-A. He then annihilated opposing pitchers in 2025, earning a promotion to Cleveland late in the season, where he was an average hitter. He began 2026 with the Guardians, but was sent down to Triple-A after just nine games, where he has struggled, posting a 90 wRC+ over 41 games with the Clippers. Hopefully he can find that magic again.
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5 (125). Cooper Ingle. C/LHH. Age 21. $400K bonus.
Ingle’s bat has been elite at every level of MiLB with wRC+’s of 153 in 2023, 161 in 2024, 139 in 2025 and then 150 at Triple-A this year, which earned him a promotion to Cleveland after slashing .284/.416/.551 in 51 games with the Clippers. Ingle’s fairy tale has turned back into a pumpkin with the Guardians, however, as he’s struggled to hit (.095 batting average with no extra base hits) and his defense has been atrocious in the outfield. He’s being sent down to Columbus today to continue to work on his defense, which has cost Cleveland at least one game thus far.
6 (161). Christian Knapczyk. 2B/LHH. Age 21. $390K bonus.
A high-contact middle infielder out of Louisville, Knapczyk has been slightly above average every season at every new level – until this year. He’s repeating a level for the first time in his career and it is not working out. After posting wRC+ over 100 at every level, he’s slashing just .150/.259/.213, good for a career-low-by-a-mile 39 wRC+. Knapczyk is on borrowed time unless he can turn it around in a hurry.
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7 (188). Tommy Hawke. OF/LHH. Age 21. $300K bonus.
A light-hitting speed demon of an outfielder, Hawke has performed well at every level. I have no idea why, but Cleveland repeated him at Single-A to begin 2025, where he proceeded to put up a 154 wRC+ with 63 stolen bases in 63 games, earning a promotion to High-A. He’s repeating at High-A this season and is doing a great job of getting on base, slashing .292/.430/.354 and already has a game where he stole six bases this season. Hawke doesn’t provide much pop, but he’s a prototypical leadoff hitter. Hopefully Cleveland can speed up his development a bit.
8 (218). Alex Mooney. SS/RHH. Age 21. $1M bonus.
Cleveland went way overslot for Mooney as a seventh round pick out of Duke, but it hasn’t paid off. His most productive season was 2024, where he stole 43 bases, clubbed 12 homers and put up a 112 wRC+ at High-A. He struggled in 2025 at Double-A and is doing even worse this season while repeating there, putting up a 68 wRC+ through 73 games.
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9 (248). Jonah Advincula. OF/LHH. Age 22. $150K bonus.
A speedy outfielder with strong contact ability, Advincula has performed well at every level he’s played. He put up an impressive 156 wRC+ at High-A in 2025, earning a promotion to Double-A and he’s doing even better repeating this year at Double-A, batting .348/.400/.870 in a limited seven-game sample size as his season was delayed due to injury. After never hitting more than five home runs in a season, he already has three in seven games this year.
10 (278). Jay Driver. RHP. Age 21. $151K bonus.
A bullpen arm drafted out of Harvard, Driver had a sensational 2024 season, sporting a 1.53 ERA through 40 games. He is getting his first taste of Double-A this season and currently has a 3.70 ERA pitching 41.1 innings with 29 appearances as a workhorse for Akron’s pen and even has three saves.
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11 (308). Matt Wilkinson. LHP. Age 20. $110K bonus.
“Tugboat” was a revelation his debut season in 2024 when he was one of the top starting pitchers in MiLB for both strikeouts, ERA and WHIP. Wilkinson struggled in 2025 at High-A, but then dominated Double-A this season with a 1.59 ERA through six starts before he was traded to San Francisco as part of the Patrick Bailey deal. He’s since been promoted to Triple-A, where he’s already made four starts.
12 (338). Johnny Tincher. C/RHH. Age 21. $150K bonus.
Drafted as a defense-first catcher out of Washington, Tincher was never able to hit much in Cleveland’s system, earning opportunities to catch in repeat seasons at High-A, where he never hit better than .202. He was released right before the beginning of this season.
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13 (368). Keegan Zinn. RHP. Age 18. $150K bonus.
A prep pitching prospect, Zinn struggled at the Arizona Complex League as a starter, but has since transitioned to the bullpen this year, where his strikeout numbers have exploded to 14.3 per nine innings. He’s still struggling with getting hit hard, especially a 1.64 HR per nine, but there might be something there with the improved ability to miss bats.
14 (398). Jacob Bresnahan. LHP. Age 18. $380K bonus.
Bresnahan was the top pitcher in the Arizona Complex League in 2024, earning a late promotion to full-season ball in his age-19 season. His story with Cleveland ended there, however, as he was the key piece in the Alex Cobb trade with San Francisco. Bresnahan dominated Single-A in 2025 and is pitching well at High-A this season at age 21. He currently is the No. 7 prospect in the Giants system. I have a feeling Cleveland will regret this trade someday.
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15 (428). Zane Morehouse. RHP. Age 23. $150K bonus.
Morehouse has had one good season thus far – 2024, where he impressed at High-A and was even better at Double-A. He’s struggled to repeat that success, however, putting up a 6.00 ERA in 2025 and currently sporting an 8.36 ERA while repeating the last two years at Double-A.
16 (458). Kyle Scott. RHP. Age 21. $150K bonus.
Drafted out of Lackawanna College in Scranton, Scott has been given an opportunity to be a long reliever and occasional starting pitcher for Lynchburg in the 2024 season, impressing to the tune of a 3.00 ERA over 96 innings pitched. He was just as good at High-A in 2025 before he was injured, finishing the year on the 60-day IL with an undisclosed elbow injury. He still is recovering and has yet to make his 2026 debut.
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17 (518). Barrett Riebock. OF/LHH. Age 20. $150K bonus.
A junior college outfielder, Riebock has struggled in the Arizona Complex League in 2024, then struggled even more at full-season Single-A. He was released before the beginning of the 2025 season.
18 (548). Matt Jachec. RHP. Age 21. $50K bonus.
Jachec has impressed at multiple levels out of the bullpen thus far in his MiLB career. He’s currently having his best season as a professional while repeating at Double-A Akron. Through 16 games and 22.2 innings pitched, he has a 2.38 ERA and is striking out 11.9 batters per nine innings.
19 (578). Josh Harlow. RHP. Age 22. $100K bonus.
Harlow’s best season was 2024, where he had a 3.36 ERA over two levels, finishing the year at High-A. He spent all of 2025 at High-A where he struggled mightily with walks. He began this season on the injured list and currently is on a rehab assignment in the Complex League.
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Undrafted free agents
Cleveland signed four additional players in 2023, all of them pitchers.
Jake Berry. LHP. Age 22.
Berry pitched 3.1 innings in 2024, putting up a 16.20 ERA before getting injured. He spent the remainder of the 2024 season and all of the 2025 season on the injured list before being released at the beginning of this season.
Rorik Maltrud. RHP. Age 23.
Maltrud has stuck in Cleveland’s system as a depth starting pitching option, advancing to High-A in 2024 with a combined 3.44 ERA over 104.2 innings. He spent his 2025 season at Double-A and then earned a promotion to Triple-A this year, where he’s been the most consistent starting pitcher for the Clippers, posting a 3.82 ERA through 14 starts with a 1.22 WHIP.
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Carter Spivey. RHP. Age 23.
Signed as a free agent in January 2024, Spivey dominated High-A Lake County with a 3.32 ERA over 24 games started. He pitched in both Akron and Columbus in 2025 before his season was derailed by a shoulder injury. He currently is on the full-season injured list for Akron.
Javi Torres. RHP. Age 18.
Signed as an undrafted free agent out of Judson High School in Texas, Torres unfortunately underwent Tommy John surgery, delaying his pro debut. He pitched 0.1 innings in 2025 and finally is getting a legit chance this year, where he has been a revelation for Hill City with a 1.69 ERA through nine appearance with 16 strikeouts in 16 innings pitched.
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Summary
AAA: 5 (Cooper Ingle, Ralphy Velazquez, C.J. Kayfus, Andrew Walters, Rorik Maltrud)
AA: 6 (Christian Knapczyk, Alex Mooney, Jonah Advincula, Jay Driver, Zane Morehouse, Matt Jachec)
A+: 2 (Tommy Hawke, Josh Harlow)
A: 2 (Keegan Zinn, Javi Torres).
Traded: 3 (Alex Clemmey, Matt Wilkinson, Jacob Brenehan)
Injured: 2 (Kyle Scott, Carter Spivey)
Released: 3 (Johnny Tincher, Barrett Riebock, Jake Berry)
Signed players/Still in the organization (23/17)
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