The Cleveland Guardians are known for developing some of the best relief pitchers in the world.
That impressive ability to help pitchers find the best version of themselves helped them develop bullpen stars like Hunter Gaddis, Cade Smith, Tim Herrin, Erik Sabrowski, Andrew Walters, and, of course, have a hand in Emmanuel Clase’s recent improvement.
This is why you should trust the Guards if they trade a reliever to bring in a prospect or fortify another position: they know in their hearts that the reliever pipeline will keep on producing talent.
Steven Pérez might be one of the best Guardians relief pitching prospects you might have not heard of.
Everybody is focused on Sabrowski, Walters, Nic Enright, Franco Aleman, and other Guardians relievers in their rookie phase or close to debuting, but if you look a bit further down the farm, you will see talented arms like Perez’s.
He was spotted throwing a bullpen at the team spring training complex in Goodyear, Arizona, getting ready for what will be a key campaign for him.
“Cleveland #Guardians 23yr old LHP relief prospect Steven Perez during a recent bullpen out at the organizations Goodyear Development Complex. Perez appeared in 37 games during the 2024 between (Low-A) Lynchburg and (High-A) Lake County posting a 2.59 ERA with 70 strikeouts over 55.2 innings pitched,” Guardians Prospective posted on X.
Cleveland #Guardians 23yr old LHP relief prospect Steven Perez during a recent bullpen out at the organizations Goodyear Development Complex.
Perez appeared in 37 games during the 2024 between (Low-A) Lynchburg and (High-A) Lake County posting a 2.59 ERA with 70 strikeouts over… pic.twitter.com/pSNkNBsYgV
— Guardians Prospective (@CleGuardPro) February 8, 2025
Why is the 2025 season so important to Perez?
Yes, his 2.59 ERA in 2024 was impressive, but he is a soon-to-be 24-year-old still in High-A.
He needs to make 2025 his year and show that he can make his way to the high minors.
That 2.59 ERA is the result of his ventures on Single-A and High-A.
However, he was much more successful in for former (2.20 ERA) than the latter (3.68 ERA).
Therefore, you can make a case that he hasn’t even cleared High-A.
As his 4.37 walks per nine innings last year suggest, he still needs to refine control and command.
Perez likely starts the season in Lake County (High-A), trying to ace the level.
If he can finish the year in Double-A, he could be in line for a call-up next season.
NEXT: Guardians Top Prospect Shows Off His Explosive Swing In Hitting Session
