The Cleveland Guardians have always taken pride in their development system.
Being a small-market team, they can’t always compete with the bright lights or heavy paychecks of big cities, so they have to find and develop their stars to stay competitive.
That approach has worked out for them more often than not.
That’s why it’s not much of a surprise to hear that experts around baseball believe they have the fifth-best farm system in the game right now.
In a recent column by multiple MLB writers, they gushed about the Guardians and their new approach to player development:
“Though they’re known for developing pitching, the Guardians have a hitter-heavy system. Nine of their 11 best prospects are bats, led by 2024 No. 1 overall pick Bazzana, and they spent most of the 2025 Draft capital on more hitters, starting with outfielder Jace LaViolette and infielder Dean Curley, who slid after rocky seasons. They’re doing a nice job of helping hit-over-power guys such as Kayfus and catcher Cooper Ingle discover more pop,” per Jim Callis, Sam Dykstra, and Jonathan Mayo.
The Guardians did add another stellar pitching prospect in the Shane Bieber trade.
Landing Khal Stephen from the Toronto Blue Jays in return for a player who was going to become a free agent was a master move by the front office.
But just like they pointed out, this team is now focused on sluggers.
For most of their history, the Guardians went to great lengths to find and polish middle infielders with a knack for contact over power, but that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore.
They spent most of their draft capital on big bats, and they want to put an end to those days of offensive struggles.
Of course, it will take some time before they start reaping what they’re sowing right now, but this organization has usually preached patience, and they’ve done just fine with that approach.
Hopefully, several of their many promising prospects will turn out to be as good as advertised.
NEXT: Logan Allen Quietly Gives Guardians Everything They Ask Of Him
