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Some controversy around Don Mattingly’s use of his closer in yesterday’s NL Wildcard game vs. the Braves should provide some opportunity for conversation for the Guardians leading into their American League Division Series beginning this weekend.

Entering the bottom of the seventh inning with a 3-2 lead, Mattingly brought Jhoan Duran in to face numbers 9, 1 and 2 in the Atlanta Braves’ order. He then brought him out again in the eighth to get hitters 3, 4 and 5 in the order. The internet is now full of folks calling Mattingly’s decision to go to his closer earlier a mistake because Duran ended up giving up a 3-run, go-ahead homer to Austin Riley in the 8th after the 5th and 6th hitters reach (via infield hit and a hit-by-pitch). But, I don’t think that’s quite fair to Mattingly… or to Duran… or to any team that might take a similar strategic path.

Duran came in with a narrow one-run lead and got five straight outs from the most dangerous hitters in the Atlanta lineup. He then gave up incredibly weak contact that unluckily resulted in a hit. At this point, someone should have been warming and getting ready as quickly as possible. Said pitcher would have had six pitches and a potential mound visit to start to get ready before the fateful Riley at-bat. However, I suspect Mattingly had a longer leash on Duran than optimal because the Phillies’ bullpen as a whole is not great.

I would argue that Mattingly’ process – despite the bad result – was sound. The most important thing to do in a playoff game in which you have a lead in the 7th or later is make sure that your best reliever throws meaningful pitches against your opponent’s best hitters. He accomplished this and got 5 out of 6 hitters out. At that point, I think it would have made sense to have the next best option ready to come in the game and remove Duran, not only because it was an unfamiliar situation for their closer but because there were two outs and you’re asking for one more out with a runner on first. Additionally, no one other than the six hitters who have faced him gets a rep against Duran to help them later in the series (though Atlanta is very familiar with the Phillies).

I hope Stephen Vogt can have conversations with his bullpen about similar situations. If the Guardians had the exact same situation, going to Cade Smith there makes perfect sense and guarantees he sees the best hitters at the end of the game with a lead. Smith also has experience going multiple innings and being the “fireman” in the past. The off days of the series should also allow the Guardians to be aggressive with Smith and their other best arms as they will have time to recover in-between appearances. Erik Sabrowski, Daniel Espino, Shawn Armstrong, a healthy Colin Holderman and even on a good day Tim Herrin are more than capable of getting a batter to end the 8th… or you let Tanner Bibee or Foster Griffin throw the kitchen sink at a hitter.

I do not mean to dismiss the importance of reliever comfort and role establishment. If the team truly believes that Smith being jarred from the role of pitching the 8th into the 9th would negatively affect his mental status, don’t do it. However, from everything we know of Cade, I doubt this is the case. The one thing to avoid at all costs is losing a lead in the 7th or later without Cade Smith facing your opponent’s greatest threats. Mattingly made sure to avoid it yesterday and I hope the Guardians will as well in the series to come.

Game 1 of the Wild Card round is in the books, and Chicago, we have some serious problems. The Cubs’ vaunted offense did nothing against Padres pitching, narrowly avoiding being no-hit in the first of the three-game series. Admittedly, Michael King dominated, throwing pitches that looked out of the zone only to dart back in to an unhittable corner of the plate. It completely disrupted a Cubs offense that is defined by taking walks, forcing pitchers to the big part of the zone and then doing damage. If Nick Pivetta is able to execute a similar strategy tonight the Cubs’ Postseason will end unceremoniously tonight.

It’s also unclear how many people in Chicago actually were able to watch the game (whether you think that’s a blessing or a curse is debatable). The Wild Card round was hosted on NBC, which decided to put both of the Chicago games on its streaming platform Peacock and a lesser carried channel, NBC Sports Network. If you subscribe to Comcast/Xfinity, YouTube TV or Fubo, you had the game via those services. If you subscribe to Peacock (more on that in a second) you had the game. If you either get cable through Astound (previously RCN) or DirecTV, you were out of luck, as they don’t carry NBCSN. This was also true if you use a live TV streaming option other than YouTube or Fubo. As reported in the Sun-Times:

To watch Games 1 and 2 of Cubs-Padres and White Sox-Astros, fans must watch on Peacock, which costs $12.99 per month, or NBCSN, which is available on Comcast’s Xfinity system and streamers Fubo and YouTube TV. Though Xfinity and YouTube TV are two of the largest pay-TV providers in the country, NBCSN is missing from services such as DirecTV and Astound/RCN.

A couple of notes here: I am one of the people impacted by this as I use Sling and despite having multiple sports add-ons had no way to access NBCSN through that platform. Additionally, not to quibble with the Sun-Times, but when I looked at the cost of adding Peacock for the game yesterday it was $19.99 a month and there was no option for a free trial through NBC. I did some digging and found that I could add a 7-day Peacock trial through Amazon Prime, and if I didn’t cancel in seven days the charge would be an additional $19.99 a month. I have also since heard on social media that if you have some cable packages, Peacock is a $5 add-on, for others it’s $9.

Got it?

The current maze of streaming, cable and pay-TV options is exhausting. Admittedly, I am taking people’s word on the price they are charged for Peacock right now, and didn’t devote even more hours trying to figure out their pricing tiers and deals. And that’s just Peacock. This season MLB had a handful of deals with multiple streamers who all have their own deals with different providers, etc.

Major League Baseball deliberately partitioning off a handful of games here and a handful of games there is designed to extract the maximum amount of money from their most engaged fans at a time most Americans feel stretched economically. Want to watch the Home Run Derby? Better have Netflix. Want to watch teams all over the country (except your local team)? Better sign up for MLB.TV. Want to watch your local team? Better pay them for streaming too, and/or pray your cable or pay-TV option has a deal with them. You can shell out $19.99 a month to subscribe to Marquee Sports Network, right? Want to watch your local team in the playoffs? That’s another $19.99 a month, either to NBC or through an add-on via some other nonsense Subscription as a Service (SAAS) designed to ensure you NEVER pay for just one thing. You’re always shelling out a few dollars here, a few dollars there, and from a company perspective, hopefully forgetting you signed up for that free trial so they can milk you for $19.99 until you figure it out.

Oh, and it doesn’t stop there. Not only are they hoping you forget you are paying them every month, they can and will raise those rates with as little notice as legally possible until you figure out that what you used to spend $64 a year for has somehow ballooned to $122 in less than two years. Streamflation is real, as reported this month by Nerdist:

Last year, we set out to chronicle the number of price hikes we’d see across streaming platforms. It had started to feel like every day, a streaming platform would raise its prices and increase its costs to subscribers. And that turned out to be… basically true. In 2025, we saw a total of SIX streaming price hikes — averaging out to about one cost increase every other month. While in a vacuum, streaming price increases can feel immaterial, taken altogether, the constant cost hikes are INTENSE. So this year, we’re doing it again. Join us as we take a look at every streaming price hike and cost increase in 2026. Will we be over or under the 2025 total? We’re already tied at 6 streaming price hikes in 2026 and 2025… So under is off the table… And over is looking likely.

My apologies for screenshotting the table of contents to summarize this article, there are so many increases, with so much individual nuance, the table of contents is the best way to get a sense of the scope of the changes. You really should read the whole thing to get an idea of actual increases and then take a close look at your bill to tally what you’re actually paying for TV and streaming):

Spoiler alert: they are all just really hoping that you never notice it or do the tally. That $7 becoming $9 becoming $14.99 just doesn’t register in the slew of other cost increases that are more in your face each day. It’s hard to escape the conclusion that one-off events like the MLB Wild Card round being on a niche streaming service that’s losing the platform wars are designed to artificially increase their market share. Here is the list of top streaming services in the United States by subscribers according to FlixPatrol:

There are any number of fans who are just tired of this discourse. I don’t blame them, it’s a complaint about the new media reality that probably isn’t changing anytime soon. Someone is always going to lose. Get over it and either sign up for the free trial, remember to cancel, pay $5 (or $9, or $12.99 or $19.99) and watch the game or choose to miss it.

However, the answer to an increasingly labyrinthine and opaque system for charging baseball fans the maximum they’ll agree to pay for games is not to just sigh and open your wallet. Especially not while corporate fingers are crossed behind CEO backs as they secretly hope you forget you added their service. It’s a textbook example of why people despise big business. Don’t take my word for it, Gallup polls these things:

Fifteen percent of Americans say they have “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in big business, far below the 70% who say they have confidence in small business, as of June 2025. Separately, an August 2025 poll found that 37% of Americans have a positive view of big business, while 95% have a positive view of small business. Perceptions of small business have generally been steady in recent years, while views of big business have worsened.

Perhaps the billionaires who own baseball teams and the people who direct MLB’s front offices to make these decisions don’t care about any of that. Netflix offered more than Peacock, who offered more than Amazon, and some consultant with a spreadsheet figured out a way to maximize all of that at the cost of our growing anger and frustration. Fans have dealt with that angst in housing, food costs and the rising cost of everything else, so we’ll probably tolerate it from baseball too. Even if the powers that be in MLB’s front offices believe fans will always come back and they don’t need to worry about losing their most loyal fans, they should worry about the constraints they are inadvertently putting on growing the next generation of fans. How many kiddos out there won’t even have the chance to fall in love with baseball because they never saw the big moments in the first place?

MLB should be more than a corporation. It should be more than profit and loss statements. The type of loyalty, love and heartbreak that was on display at our watch party last night in Wrigleyville is a priceless asset MLB and team owners hold in trust. The endless carousel of streaming complications making it difficult for fans to watch the most important games of the year is a violation of that trust. MLB is playing a dangerous game leaving their fans disgruntled with these arrangements, especially with a labor battle looming that threatens the viability of the sport in 2027 and beyond.

The Mets began the final two weeks of the season with four straight losses, in which they only scored more than one run in one of those four games. Things picked up a little bit after that, but the Mets only won one series in the final two weeks of 2026, playing spoilers to a Rangers team that would just miss the playoffs in a weak AL West. This was mostly a team just playing out the string, but the bright side is NL Rookie of the Year candidate Carson Benge finished the season hot, which may get him a few extra votes.

Player	Last week	This week
Francisco Alvarez, C
Brett Baty, UTIL
Carson Benge, OF
Bo Bichette, 3B
A.J. Ewing, OF
Francisco Lindor, SS
Ronny Mauricio, INF	—
Nick Morabito, OF
Christopher Morel, 1B/DH
Cristian Pache, OF		—
Marcus Semien, 2B
Juan Soto, OF
Luis Torrens, C
Mark Vientos, 1B/3B
Jared Young, 1B/DH

Since I mentioned Carson Benge, we’ll start with him. He was by far the Mets’ best hitter over the final two weeks of the season, putting up a blistering 201 wRC+ in 59 plate appearances and making another “splendiferous” catch in the outfield in the season’s final series in DC. He led the team in hits by a large margin with 21—six more than anybody else. He also led the team in runs scored with ten and RBIs with eight. He racked up six extra base hits, including three home runs. The final of those three home runs was his 20th, making him the first Mets rookie to have a 20-20 season. It’s possible that Benge still doesn’t end up beating out Sal Stewart’s sexy run production totals, but going 21-for-57 in the season’s final two weeks in a sprint to the finish certainly helped bolster his case.

When Jared Young’s very good 2026 season came to an extremely unfortunate end, Ronny Mauricio was called up to take his spot on the roster and had an incredible power surge to make his case to remain in the Mets’ future plans. In the Mets’ only victory against the Nationals in DC on Saturday, Mauricio went deep from both sides of the plate in his first multi-home run game of his career. Overall, Mauricio had four hits in 12 plate appearances, but three of those four hits were home runs. He drove in six runs and also walked twice.

The Mets’ other young player more on the fringes Nick Morabito also logged 12 plate appearances in the season’s final two weeks, but did not produce as many fireworks as Mauricio. He had three hits—two singles and a double—two runs scored and no RBIs. He also struck out six times and didn’t draw any walks, which is not a ratio you want to see. The future for both him and Mauricio on the team is uncertain, but unlike Morabito, Mauricio is out of options.

The future is also uncertain for both Mark Vientos and Brett Baty, who you could argue are borderline non-tender candidates in the offseason. However, the latter showed some spark in the form of a hot streak in the season’s final month that the former did not. Though Baty was not quite as red hot as in the first half of September, he is still one of the few Mets’ hitters to receive a positive grade for racking up ten hits in 38 plate appearances, including a home run—good for a very strong 147 wRC+ to finish out his season. Baty scored five runs, drove in six runs, and walked six times. He even expanded his repertoire to include the shortstop position in the season’s penultimate game, making his first career start there while Francisco Lindor served as the DH. Vientos’ season did not end on quite as high a note; he put up a 23 wRC+ in 25 plate appearances, notching just four hits—two singles and two doubles. He drove in two runs and walked once, while striking out seven times. While Baty made the case that he still belongs on the Mets’ roster next year, one can’t confidently say the same for Vientos based on his performance after returning from the injured list.

Francisco Lindor’s final two weeks were rather mediocre overall, but he did finally reach the milestone he had been chasing on the season’s final day, going deep for his 300th career home run. In doing so, he became the first shortstop in MLB history to hit 300 home runs and steal 200 bases. That home run was one of ten hits for Lindor over his final 63 plate appearances of 2026 and one of four extra-base hits. Lindor scored seven runs—second only to Benge for the team lead—and drove in two runs. He also walked seven times, which is the second-most on the team, but led the team in strikeouts with 14. Overall, he posted a 59 wRC+ in the second half of September.

By contrast, Juan Soto put up a much more solid 123 wRC+ in the final two weeks of the season. His eight RBIs match Benge for the team lead and his 15 hits are the second-most on the team. Soto also led the team in walks with nine and that is before including the five times he was walked intentionally, including three times in a single game during the Rangers series. Soto even stole a base for good measure, bring his total up to nine steals for the season—a far cry from last year’s total, but at least a good indicator that he is feeling healthy and hopefully ready to contribute a fully healthy season next year. Even though he played in only 111 games, the lowest of any full season in his career, he still amassed 3.0 bWAR in 2026.

The only other hitter to get a positive grade in the season’s final meter is A.J. Ewing, who joined his fellow Mets rookies in finishing strong with a 110 wRC+ in 51 plate appearances. Of course, his numbers aren’t as flashy as Benge’s, but 12-for-45 with six walks and two stolen bases is perfectly adequate production from a center fielder of his caliber defensively. Two of those 12 hits were home runs and Ewing scored five runs and drove in six runs.

Bo Bichette certainly didn’t end his season with a bang in a fashion that would make one confident he is opting out of his contract. He posted a rather pedestrian 84 wRC+ in 61 plate appearances in the last two weeks of the season. Of his 13 hits, only three went for extra bases, but he did go deep twice. He scored four suns, drove in five runs, and walked five times across these 13 games. Perhaps most notably, Bichette grounded into four double plays in the final two weeks of the season while nobody else in the team grounded into more than one; while this is small sample size theater like everything we do here with the meters, I can’t help but feel it is a microcosm of how this season has gone where so often Juan Soto gets on base ahead of Bichette—either because he gets a hit or because teams are pitching around him—and Bichette fails to deliver. Bichette has mentioned Andy Green as his favorite manager he’s ever played for in recent remarks, so the Mets installing him in the role permanently may sway Bichette to stay in New York rather than gamble on trying to get another big contract after an underwhelming season.

In the meantime, in his 2026 postmortem presser, David Stearns would not commit to Marcus Semien as the everyday second baseman next year and it’s easy to see why. Semien put up a 48 wRC+ in 46 plate appearances over the final two weeks of the season and ends his season with a 74 wRC+ overall for 2026. The Mets could have potentially lived with that if he was still playing Gold Glove caliber defense, but he also took a step (more like several steps, if we’re being honest) back defensively this year. Semien collected seven hits, three of which went for extra bases, including a home run. He scored five runs, drove in three runs, and walked four times. He also was caught stealing once.

Meanwhile, it was a rough week for the Mets’ catching tandem in more ways than one. Francisco Alvarez had an ugly game in the series opener in DC, grounding into a double play with the bases loaded in the first, making an errant throw in the second inning, and being behind the plate for three wild pitches in the third, two of which allowed a run to score. Overall, his numbers with the bat weren’t awful; he posted an 81 wRC+ in 37 plate appearances to finish out the season. He amassed nine hits, including two doubles and a home run. He scored six runs and drove in six runs, but he walked only once and struck out 11 times. Meanwhile, the numbers are garish for Luis Torrens, who finished the season 2-for-18 with a -28 wRC+. Torrens scored two runs, drove in a run, and walked just once while striking out seven times. I think it’s safe to say that the August power surge for Torrens petered out over these final couple of weeks.

There were no notable moments in the last two weeks of the season from the final two bench players Christopher Morel and Cristian Pache. Morel had eight plate appearances across three games and did not reach base in any of them. Pache does not get a grade because he only appeared in one game, but did not take an at-bat.

That’s a wrap on the position players for 2026 and we’ll get the final meter for the pitchers tomorrow. As always, I appreciate the community taking the time to read and engage with these fun meter posts every season!

Cristopher Sánchez and the Phillies take on Tyler Mahle in Atlanta.

Sean Burke and the White Sox try to finish off Hunter Brown and the Astros in Houston.

Sonny Gray and the Red Sox try to stay alive against Max Fried and the Yankees in New York

Kevin Gausman leads the Cubs’ rallying efforts against Nick Pivetta and the Padres in San Diego.

Go nuts everybody

There were a lot of positive things to come out of the 2026 season for the Nationals. The offense exploded, starters like Cade Cavalli and Andrew Alvarez broke out, and the farm system is in a great place. However, the bullpen was a nightmare for the Nats this season. They aimlessly cycled through arms and repeatedly blew games.

The bullpen made history, but not in a good way. The 2026 Nationals set the all time blown saves record with 42 blown saves this season. They set the record on September 8th, when they blew their 38th save and did not look back from that. It was an ugly year, especially late in games.

Honestly, this record was a bit of a perfect storm. It is unusual to have such a good offense paired with a very bad pitching staff, but that is what happened with the 2026 Nationals. That meant the bullpen had a lot of leads to protect, and inevitably they blew a lot of them.

When you look at the raw ERA total, the 2026 bullpen was actually better than 2025. Last season, the Nats posted a 5.59 bullpen ERA, the worst in baseball. This season, that number actually dropped to 4.99. However, due to all the leads the offense gave them, the Nats bullpen blew more games this year.

George Lewis on X actually tracked every blown save for the Nats. Most of them actually did not come in the 9th inning, interestingly. That chart shows a lot of interesting trends. It also gives you a visual of how unreliable the unit is.

What this tells me, is the Nats need a sure fire option at the back end of the bullpen. We will see how much money the Nats spend this offseason, but a lot of that budget needs to go to the bullpen. You can argue about the merits of throwing big money at bullpen arms, but the Nats do not have much of a choice. Once you have a true alpha in the bullpen, it helps the rest of the bullpen settle into a more appropriate role.

In my opinion, the Nats need to either sign a big money reliever or make a trade for a big time arm. Spencer Nusbaum wrote about how there was no guarantee the Nats sign a big fish in the bullpen. I think it should be at the top of their wish list though.

I do not necessarily need the arm to have closing experience, but I want someone who has proven they can produce at a high level. My dream option actually does not have 9th inning experience. 

It would be far-fetched, but Adrian Morejon would be such a perfect fit for this team. He checks just about every box. Morejon is a very young free agent, not turning 28 until February. He also has absolutely insane stuff, with a savant page that is about as red as it gets. The market for Morejon will be bonkers, so I would not hold my breath there.

The other big name at the top of the market is David Bednar. He has proven he can handle the spotlight and has thrived as the Yankees closer. Bednar has a filthy three pitch mix, but again, the market will be intense. If Mark Lerner and the front office want to make a statement, that would be a great signing to make.

Honestly, there are plenty of options on the market, and the Nats need to come away with at least one or two of these guys. Some names that intrigue me are Evan Phillips, Raisel Iglesias and Alex Vesia. Those three are more realistic than the first two in my opinion.

Based on what we know about Paul Toboni, it does not seem like throwing major resources at the bullpen is something he wants to do. However, I do not think he has much of a choice right now. He tried to build a bullpen through shrewd waiver claims, internal development and minor trades. That simply did not work. We found a few nice arms, but no future closers.

If the Nats do acquire one or two heavy hitters, I think the bullpen would be in a nice spot. Over the last couple months of the season, some depth started to emerge. I like Erik Tolman, Jack Sinclair, Will Dion, Orlando Ribalta, Yovanny Cruz, Riley Cornelio and Brad Lord. However, I do not like any of those guys pitching in the 9th inning.

Once you find that alpha in the back of the bullpen, things begin to take shape. This offseason, Paul Toboni needs to swing big at the top of the relief market, instead of looking for quantity. With the right closer to spearhead this unit, I think the Nats bullpen could surprise people in 2027.

Now that the minor league seasons are over for Cleveland’s affiliates, it’s time to take a look back and see which players made a name for themselves in 2026 and should be monitored to make an impact on the 2027 Guardians’ team.

Prospects who Debuted and Ended the Season on the Guardians:
Chase DeLauter, Travis Bazzana, Angel Genao, Daniel Espino, Parker Messick, and Austin Peterson: From your rookie of the year candidates – DeLauter and Messick – to your AL All-Star – Bazzana – to a guy throwing 100 mph out of the bullpen – Espino – to your solid longman/fifth starter – Peterson, this was a special group of Guardians’ rookies without a doubt.

Columbus Clippers:

Hitters:
Cooper Ingle, LH C/LF – 151 wRC+, 23/18 (.371 wOBA/.351 xwOBA in August-September) – Ingle is clearly going to be a good hitter, but it’s his defensive home that’s the trouble. Can he stick at catcher? Will he be able to adjust to left field (after a disastrous few games there in Cleveland)? At the plate, he clearly sold out for some more power this season, leading to an uptick in strikeouts. Was the trade-off worth it? All questions the Guardians have to answer, but I do wonder if Ingle isn’t Kwan’s eventual replacement in left.

Ralphy Velazquez – 133 wRC+, 21/11 – (.481 wOBA/.396 xwOBA in Aug-Sep). For those wondering, in Ralphy’s last two months he put up a .491 wOBA on off-speed pitches, a .355 wOBA on curveballs, and a .355 wOBA on sliders. His wOBA on fastballs was a ridiculous .561. Basically, he is steadily figuring each kind of pitch out and doing damage on them. I believe he should be plan-A to start 2027 at first base for the Guardians.

Kahlil Watson, LH CF – 116 wRC+, 27/13 (.348 wOBA/.344 xwOBA in Aug-Sep) – Watson is such a fun player and competitor but I just can’t see him making it as a big leaguer with his chase and whiff issues.

Kody Huff, RH C/1B – 131 wRC+, 20/14, .362 wOBA/.311 xwOBA in Aug-Sep) – This was a breakout year for Huff at the plate, who hit lefties extremely well. Zack Meisel of the Athletic has repeatedly mentioned how much the Guardians love him, and I would assume he is next in line if anything should happen to injure on the Bailey-Hedges tandem in Cleveland. I see little reason to doubt Hedges will be back in 2027. Huff is Rule-5 eligible and looks like he will be a needed add this offseason.

Note: George Valera, LH OF/DH ended 2026 with a .544 wOBA for August-September, but only a .364 xwOBA. I suspect Gorgeous George will see time with a major league team again, but it may not be in Cleveland, if only because of his horrible defense in the corner outfield spots.

Pitchers:
Rorik Maltrud, RHP – 3.90 ERA/4.58 FIP, 7.86/3.27 K/BB/9 (Aug-Sept: .262 wOBA/.263 xwOBA allowed). Maltrud looks like a functional emergency starter option for MLB games next season.

Justin Campbell, RHP – 2.08 ERA/3.31 FIP, 8.83/3.12 K/BB/9 (Aug-Sept: .269 wOBA/.270 xwOBA allowed). Campbell being healthy and looking special this season is probably the best news for the organization’s pitching group aside from Messick and Espino. He needs to increase his strikeout numbers at Triple-A, but I think we can be reasonably confident that with additional reps, he will do so. Hopefully, Campbell has a smooth offseason in recovery and training and arrives for Spring Training ready to compete for a major league spot, making himself an option during the 2027 season. Campbell is Rule-5 eligible and will have to be added to the 40-man prior to the lockout.

Steven Perez, LHrP – 4.78 ERA /4.79 FIP, 9.72/5.40 K/BB/9 (Aug-Sept: .262 wOBA/.235 xwOBA allowed). Perez had a rocky season in the tough pitching environment of Triple-A (especially in Columbus), but he finished strong and still has major league left-handed specialist ceiling. He lowered that walk-rate about 2 walks per 9 for August-September which is the key for making this ceiling attainable.

Rubber Ducks:

Hitters:

Ryan Cesarini, LH RF/LF – 162 wRC+, 13.6/10.3 K/BB%, .298 BABIP – Don’t sleep on Cesarini. Over the past two seasons, he has had mostly even splits as a hitter (hitting LHP slightly BETTER than RHP) and showed an impressive jump in power to accompany his excellent contact abilities. This is the kind of player who makes his way into organizational top 10 prospect lists if he starts 2027 hot in Columbus.

Nolan Schubart, LH 1B/DH – 145 wRC+, 34/18 K/BB% – Is Schubart capable of being Joey Gallo – good for a lot of strikeouts, a lot of walks and a lot of home runs? That’s the path to the majors for this likely-DH with prodiguous power. But, it’s an uncertain one because of his immense swing-and-miss issues.

Aaron Walton, RH CF – 132 wRC+, 26/13 K/BB% – Walton is one of the most exciting prospects from 2026 for me. He managed to cut his whiff JUST enough to make his hitting look potentially viable at a higher level, and he appears to be an excellent defender in center. He’s also RIGHT-HANDED which is a miracle in the Guardians’ system.

Dean Curley, RH IF – 122 wRC+, 32/13 K/BB% – Curley is an interesting player with some fun power and plate discipline, but also prone to taking WAY too many strikes and swing-and-miss. He’s also not a very good defender, and I’d expect him to get more time at third base than shortstop in the near future.

Welbyn Francisca, SH SS – From Aug.-Sept: 132 wRC+, 26/10 K/BB% – In case you forgot about this latest, switch-hitting Guardians’ shortstop project, Francisca put up an insane last two months at Double-A at the age of only 20. I’ll be interested if they get Francisca some centerfield reps (a la Kahlil Watson) or if they keep him at short where he looks viable. He pulls the ball in the air extremely consistently, but the whiff is a little high.

Additional names: Jaison Chourio (Rule-5 eligible), Bennett Thompson, and Jake Fox are names to continue to monitor, but none have put themselves into the upper echelon of Guardians’ prospects with their 2026 seasons. The outfielders Chourio and Fox and catcher Thompson all rely on heavy contact-over-power tools. Hope is not entirely lost for Jace LaViolette, who had a strong end to his Double-A season… but the clock is ticking for him to show that some swing adjustments can help him alleviate his SIGNIFICANT whiff issues.

Pitchers:

Izaak Martinez, LHP – 2.06 ERA/4.15 FIP, 11.84/3.32 K/BB/9. Did not go well in seven innings at Columbus, but looks to still have potential as a left-handed specialist

Matt Jachec, RHP – 2.05 ERA/3.83 FIP, 12.3/3.4 K/BB/9. Jachec is rule-5 eligible, for what that’s worth. I think he will be a decent major league reliever soon, at the age of 25.

Jack Jasiak, RHP – 3.02 ERA/3.48 FIP, 11.75/2.54 K/BB/9. Didn’t go well in Columbus in eight innings. Also rule-5 eligible, Jasiak will get a prompt chance to show what he can do with prolonged time in Columbus should he still be in the Guardians’ organization come Opening Day there.

Khal Stephen, RHP – 3.44 ERA/4.55 FIP, 8/3.8 K/BB/9. Stephen got to 55 innings until he had to go to the operating table for Tommy John, but his potential to be a mid-rotation starter was clear. Hopefully, he can return to the mound sometime in 2027 and be ready to help in 2028.

Franklin Gomez, LHP – 3.78 ERA/4.92 FIP, 7.56/4.32 K/BB/9. Gomez put up some great numbers in High-A and then Double-A was a struggle as he dealt with his own arm issues. He was able to return and be healthy by the end of the year, so we can have some optimism that he will take the next steps forward in 2027 (if he can pitch, as he has to be added to the 40-man this offseason).

In summary, there were some very encouraging performances from many players in the upper and lower levels of the Guardians’ farm system in 2026. The players listed above have the highest degree of probability to impact the Major League team in 2026, and, for likelihood to do that, I would look at Ingle, Velazquez, Campbell, Perez and Gomez as the highest potential to do so.