The Cleveland Guardians still have plenty of work to do in 2026 as they attempt to lock up their third straight playoff berth and hopefully make a long postseason run. But it’s also possible that the offseason will arrive much sooner than anyone wants, so there is some attention already being paid to what the team will look like next year.
Cleveland has been seeking a boost for its offense all season long, with first base a glaring area of need in the lineup. Fortunately, the Guardians already have a solution in place within the organization.
Bleacher Report is predicting that Guardians top prospect Ralphy Velazquez will make the 2027 Opening Day lineup after an outstanding season in Triple-A.
“The Guardians have multiple areas they could look to upgrade, but history tells us they’re not going to spend in free agency. A year removed from a 27-homer season, Kyle Manzardo has been relegated to Triple-A in favor of veteran Nathaniel Lowe. With Lowe departing in free agency, top prospect Ralphy Velazquez has a clear path next spring,” Joel Reuter wrote.
There has been a great deal of discussion that Velazquez should be in the majors already and trying to help the Guardians during this year’s pennant race. That’s even after Cleveland addressed its first-base situation by acquiring Lowe from the Cincinnati Reds at the MLB trade deadline in early August and sending down struggling Manzardo to make room for him.
The Guardians then decided to leave Velazquez in the minors when MLB rosters were able to expand by two players on Sept. 1. He had certainly made a strong case for a promotion by posting a .356 batting average and 1.300 OPS, with 15 home runs among his 32 hits in 23 August games for Columbus.
One of the reasons the Guardians did not call him up to add some punch to the order may be related to a potential MLB work stoppage next year. If Velazquez is added to the 40-man roster and a lockout occurs, he would not be able to play in the minors while there are no major league games.
Though the organization has not publicly said that this is part of its thinking, Cleveland may not want to derail Velazquez’s development by having him sit out for an undetermined amount of time, but whenever Opening Day arrives in 2027, he is likely to be a big part of the Guardians’ lineup at that point.
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