Cleveland Baseball Insider

Richie Palacios Impressive in MLB Debut for Guardians

With his parents in attendance, the rookie had a pair of base hits on Monday night in Anaheim.

Todd Paquette

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Cleveland Guardians 24-year-old outfield prospect Richie Palacios had to wonder if this day would ever come.

Not only did it come, he took advantage of his chance to impress … and the opportunity came about because of how hard he worked to overcome some tough obstacles the last couple years.

The former 2018 third round pick out of Towson University looked like he might be on the fast track to Cleveland as he tore through the minors in the 45 games after being drafted, hitting for a .361 average with 16 extra-base hits and a .959 OPS across three different levels.

Palacios came into 2019 looking forward to his first spring training, but he was dealt a big blow injuring his throwing shoulder. The injury required him to miss the entire season because he needed posterior labrum surgery.

Palacios never wavered, leaning on his faith to help him get through the disappointment of a lost season. A tireless worker, Richie didn’t feel sorry for himself and looked to improve his game anyway he could. He came into 2020 fully healthy and much stronger having added some good weight after finishing his rehab.

Little did Palacios know he (along with the rest of us) had more adversity heading his way. When the CoVID-19 pandemic hit, it didn’t take long before the 2020 MiLB season was canceled. But Palacios stayed positive and worked as hard as he could to be ready for baseball - whenever it came back.

The 2021 would be delayed a month but Palacios would finally see action after being assigned to Double-A Akron to start the year. In his second game of the season, he got his first hit since the 2018 season … 989 days later.

Palacios went on to have an outstanding season as though he never missed a beat, earning a promotion to Triple-A Columbus on July 30th. He finished 2021 playing in 103 games between Akron and Columbus, hitting for a .297 AVG with a .404 OBP and a .875 OPS. 

Pretty impressive for a guy missing two consecutive seasons. 

The Guardians thought so as well, adding him the 40-man roster last November 19th after the season.

One step closer to his dream of playing in the Big Leagues, Palacios entered the 2022 season with hopes of making the Guardians opening day roster in the outfield. Unfortunately, he was beat out by another young prospect Steven Kwan and optioned to Triple-A Columbus to start the season. 

Ironically it was an injury to Steven Kwan on Sunday vs. the Yankees that prompted the Guardians to call up Palacios to make his MLB debut Monday evening against the Angels.

Batting ninth and starting in left field, Palacios got his first big league hit off starter Michael Lorenzen on a line drive to left field in his first at bat.

During his second at bat, Bally Sports reporter Andre Knott was interviewing Richie's parents when he roped his second hit of the game into the outfield. Palacios was only credited for a single, but he reached second base on an error by outfielder Jo Adell. 

It was a special moment for the Palacios family, who had flown in from New York to watch his debut.

Palacios got one more at bat in the game and flew out to Mike Trout in center field leading off the seventh inning.

After the game, Palacios spoke about how much his family sacrificed for him to have the opportunity to chase his dream. 

Who knows how long Richie Palacios might be up with Cleveland. Perhaps it’s just a short stint while Kwan recovers, or maybe he’ll get a slightly longer look. 

Regardless, it was a special night for a kid from Brooklyn that overcame a lot of obstacles. He leaned on his faith and family, along with his confidence and drive to never give up to finally realize his dream.

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Todd Paquette
TODD PAQUETTE

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