Sunday, August 31

Welcome back to the Guardians Beat newsletter. My name is Tim Stebbins, and this is my first season covering Cleveland for MLB.com.

CLEVELAND -- Travis Bazzana has long been known for his great work ethic and a desire to get better every day. Unsurprisingly, that shined through after he went down with an internal right oblique strain last month.

“When you have a setback like that, it's hard not to be disappointed because he's going to miss some time,” Guardians president Chris Antonetti said. “But one of the things I so appreciate about Travis is he looks at every opportunity as an opportunity to grow and be better. 

"Whether that's adversity on the field or even now this injury, he's thinking about, ‘What can I learn from this, and how can I be better moving forward because of it?’”

Bazzana (the Guardians’ No. 1 prospect and MLB's No. 12 overall) is expected to miss 8-10 weeks due to the oblique strain, which he suffered in the second game of a doubleheader with Double-A Akron on May 14. The 21-year-old hit a double in the fourth inning but he was in clear discomfort after reaching second base and exited the game. He’s started his rehab process at the Guardians’ Arizona complex.

It was a tough setback for Bazzana (the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft), whom Antonetti lauded for having a great offseason heading into his first full season of professional ball. The timing of it was also unfortunate, considering what Bazzana was doing offensively with Akron.

In 21 games in April, Bazzana slashed .238/.347/.393 with one double, three triples, two homers, 12 walks and 27 strikeouts. Through 12 games in May, he slashed .279/.392/.512 with four doubles, two homers, seven walks and 12 strikeouts.

"He went through a period there where he was just not himself offensively,” Antonetti said. “There were things he was struggling with with his swing, and it carried over to his mindset. He worked -- like he always does -- exceptionally hard to turn that around. We were seeing the benefits of that in the weeks prior to the injury. 

"He shared that's part of what made it frustrating, because he felt he was finally hitting his stride and where he wanted to be offensively and getting locked in, and then the injury provided a setback. He's committed to coming out the other side, knowing what he needs to do to be a successful hitter, and carrying that forward from the progress he made earlier in the season."

Bazzana is known for having good pitch recognition and the ability to drive the ball across the field. Antonetti noted Bazzana felt his swing decisions were not good early on, and his timing was off as a result. The surface numbers are evidence he was finding his feel at the plate. His strikeout rate also improved from 27.6 percent in April to 23.5 in May.

Based on his expected timeline, Bazzana could return at some point in July or in August. While the lost time isn’t ideal, he still could have at least two full months of at-bats, and there’s always the opportunity for more in the Arizona Fall League. It’s too early to think that far ahead.

Right now, the priority is Bazzana getting healthy so he can get back on the field. He sounds primed to attack his rehab.

Added Antonetti: "He shows up every single day thinking, ‘How can I make the most of what's in front of me today?’ When that's conditioning, preparing for a game, he had that mindset. He's carried that mindset over to his rehab, thinking about, ‘What do I need to do today to make the most out of today?’”

Here’s a look around the farm system at standout Guardians prospects, including others from the 2024 Draft.

Triple-A Columbus: OF Petey Halpin

Halpin has had a strong season with the Clippers in his first taste of Triple-A. The 23-year-old (Cleveland’s third-round pick in 2020 and No. 27 prospect) entered Saturday with a .297/.368/.491 slash line over 43 games, with 11 doubles, three triples and five homers.

High-A Lake County: LHP Izaak Martinez

Martinez earned a promotion to Lake County on April 28 after recording a 3.07 ERA in 14 2/3 innings over seven relief appearances with Single-A Lynchburg. He has continued to produce with the Captains, posting a 1.93 ERA in 9 1/3 innings over six appearances, with 10 strikeouts and four walks. The lefty was Cleveland’s 18th-round pick last year out of UC San Diego.

Single-A Lynchburg: RHP Sean Matson

Matson (Cleveland’s ninth-round pick in 2024 out of Harvard) has recorded a 1.80 ERA in 30 innings over 13 appearances with Lynchburg (two starts), with nine walks and 40 strikeouts. 

Rookie-level Arizona Complex League: RHP Joey Oakie

Oakie (the Guardians’ No. 14 prospect, per MLB Pipeline) was Cleveland’s third-round pick in 2024. The right-hander with big velocity has made four starts in the Arizona Complex League and is coming off his best outing on Tuesday, when the 19-year-old threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing four hits and two walks with three strikeouts.

José Ramírez’s 21-game hitting streak came to an end on Friday, when he went 0-for-3 with one walk in the Guardians’ 4-1 loss to the Angels. It was Cleveland’s fourth-longest streak this century, trailing only Casey Blake's 26-game streak (May 20-June 17, 2007) and 22-game streaks by Michael Brantley (May 20-June 15, 2012) and Marty Cordova (April 22-May 18, 2001).

Ramírez, however, extended his on-base streak to 27 games on Saturday, when Kyle Hendricks intentionally walked him in the first inning. Only the Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (31 games) has a longer streak. 

• Shane Bieber celebrated his 30th birthday by making his first rehab start. Read more >>

• With David Fry back from the IL, here’s how the Guardians plan to use him while he’s limited to DH duties post-November surgery. Read more >>

• Lane Thomas’ tough start to 2025 continued with a trip back to the IL. Read more >>

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