The Cleveland Guardians recently called up star prospect Kyle Manzardo, and while he hasn’t produced as hoped yet, he remains a big part of the future and, potentially, this season, too.
His performance has been poor to this point (.392 OPS), but the jump in talent between Triple-A and the majors is bigger than ever: these things require patiece.
A lot of patience.
Fortunately, the Guardians are traditionally a patient team and can afford to give Manzardo some time to get his timing back against some of the toughest pitchers in the world.
In the meantime, we got to know Manzardo a bit more after a cool interview.
He seems like a laid-back kind of person, a cool kid who just wants to play baseball.
“Get to know Kyle Manzardo! Idaho native. Mariners and Tigers fan growing up. Favorite players as a kid: Ken Griffey Jr., Ichiro, Miguel Cabrera & David Wright,” Bally Sports Cleveland tweeted.
Get to know Kyle Manzardo!
⚾️ Idaho native
⚾️ Mariners and Tigers fan growing up
⚾️ Favorite players as a kid: Ken Griffey Jr., Ichiro, Miguel Cabrera & David Wright#ForTheLand | @CleGuardians | @DreKnott pic.twitter.com/73MxlFntOt— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) May 17, 2024
Manzardo, who had a brilliant 1.017 OPS in Triple-A before getting the call, talked about how it felt to become a major leaguer, and then discussed baseball growing up and his favorite players, among other things.
He explained that he grew up in Idaho, five hours away from the closest MLB team, which were the Seattle Mariners.
There, he fell in love with Ichiro Suzuki and Ken Griffey Jr.
However, his father is from the Michigan area and also passed him his love for the Detroit Tigers, so he also looked up to Miguel Cabrera.
What are his short-term goals in the league?
Well, he kept it simple.
“Stay true to who I am as a baseball player and as a person, and just try to put my best foot forward,” he said.
Once he gets familiar with MLB pitching, talent will likely win out.
NEXT: Guardians Prepare Fans For An Exciting Debut Friday
