Cleveland Guardians Roster
- AL Central
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- Progressive Field
Cleveland Guardians pitching prospect Trenton Denholm was the club's 14th-round pick in 2021. At 24, he's on the older side for High-A prospects, but there's still plenty to like about his profile. His fastball velocity has fluctuated over the past few years, but he has ultimately shown that he can throw it in the mid-90s. He also gets plenty of breaking action on his curveball. There are concerns about his control, especially given that he's had difficulty locating his curveball. However, his 10.02 K/9 and 0.84 BB/9 this year are both great signs. Last week, Denholm tossed a seven-inning complete-game shutout. He held his opponent scoreless while surrendering just two hits and one walk. He also showed an ability to find the strike zone and miss bats, racking up an impressive nine strikeouts over seven frames.
Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Gavin Williams (elbow) successfully threw a 50-pitch bullpen session on Wednesday. Williams said he didn't feel any lingering effects following his first bullpen session since receiving an anti-inflammatory injection, and he's scheduled to throw his next bullpen on Friday. The 24-year-old former top prospect is working his way back from discomfort in his right elbow after being shut down in late April, and it remains unclear when he'll resume his rehab assignment at this point. Williams should still be an option in Cleveland's rotation sometime in June, and fantasy managers who can afford the stash should be holding the right-hander after he posted a 3.29 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and 81:37 K:BB across 82 innings (16 starts) for the Guards in his rookie season in 2023. In the meantime, veterans Carlos Carrasco and Ben Lively will keep battling to hold down spots in the rotation.
Cleveland Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor belted his 12th home run on Tuesday night while picking up three RBI and two walks in the Guardians' 7-4 victory over the Texas Rangers. Naylor is smoking hot right now after slugging five home runs in his last 10 games. He already has 12 home runs on the season and is currently on pace to crush his career-high 20-homer mark that he reached back in 2022. He ranks second in the league in HR and is tied for sixth with 33 RBI. The batting average this season has taken a hit at .268, but it's hard for fantasy managers to complain about that with how absurd his power numbers have been. Look for Naylor to stay hot with one more contest against the Rangers and three against the Twins to finish the week.
Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez smacked a two-run single in the eighth inning and followed that up with another two-run single in the ninth inning during Monday night's 7-0 win over Texas Rangers. Ramirez went 2-for-4, collected four RBI, and picked up two stolen bases in the contest. The switch-hitting slugger has been under-par in the batting average department with a .235 average but has produced the power with nine long balls and 33 RBI. Ramirez's days of batting .280 and above may be over. Still, he remains a big-time fantasy contributor who looks to continue the momentum against rookie pitcher Jack Leiter on Tuesday and Jon Gray on Wednesday.
Cleveland Guardians outfield prospect Jaison Chourio moved into the top 100 on MLB.com's most recently updated prospects list. Chourio is having a good season so far at Single-A Lynchburg, slashing .299/.448/.423 over 97 at-bats (27 games), including two home runs, 18 RBI, 12 stolen bases, and an eye-popping 25 walks to just 18 strikeouts as an 18-year-old. At this pace, the switch-hitter should see some Double-A at-bats before the year is out. Dynasty fantasy managers should be keeping a close eye on the ascent of Cleveland's third-ranked prospect, although he probably won't see the majors until sometime in 2025 or 2026 at the earliest.