Cleveland Guardians Dominate Yet Another MLB Top Prospect List
![Jul 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians number one draft pick Travis Bazzana, right, shakes hands with third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) before the game between the Cleveland Guardians and the San Diego Padres at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports Jul 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians number one draft pick Travis Bazzana, right, shakes hands with third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) before the game between the Cleveland Guardians and the San Diego Padres at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_7430,h_4179,x_0,y_97/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/cleveland_baseball_insider/01j3n3h7vyw6k7exya1a.jpg)
The Cleveland Guardians are coming off of a fantastic MLB Draft haul highlighted by the selection of second baseman Travis Bazzana with the No. 1 overall pick.
As a result, the Guardians' farm system has vaulted up big-league rankings and is now widely considered one of the best in baseball.
First, Bleacher Report named Cleveland's minor-league system the second-best in baseball. Then, Baseball America recently placed six Guardians prospects in their top 100.
Now, Keith Law of The Athletic has ranked four Cleveland farmhands in his top 60.
Bazzana (No. 15), outfielder Jaison Chourio (No. 44), infielder Juan Brito (No. 57) and first baseman Kyle Manzardo (No. 59) all made it on to Law's list.
Bazzana has already been compared to Cleveland fan favorite Grady Sizemore at the plate. The Aussie slashed a blistering .407/.568/.911 with 28 home runs and 66 RBI over 296 plate appearances at Oregon State in 2024.
Chourio, meanwhile, is just 19 years old and is currently slashing .274/.395/.410 with four homers and 50 RBI across 334 trips to the dish at Single-A Lynchburg. He has also stolen 26 bases.
Brito's defense leaves something to be desired, but the 22-year-old has a great bat, as evidenced by his .277/.388/.449 career slash line through five minor-league campaigns in the Guardians' system.
Finally, Manzardo has actually played 30 games with Cleveland's big-league club this season, but struggled, slashing .207/.241/.329 with no homers and seven RBI. He has been raking at Triple-A Columbus, however, registering a slash line of .278/.385/.572 with 13 long balls and 34 RBI over 226 plate appearances in 2024.
The Guardians' extraordinary minor-league depth should allow them to make some significant trades to bolster their roster before the July 30 MLB trade deadline.
Cleveland entered Thursday's action with the best record in the American League at 61-40.