The people have spoken and Ralphy Velazquez is our #4 Goalkeeper prospect. Velazquez won with 84.4% of the vote despite competing against six other candidates. He gains five places from n°9 last year (and also number 9 in 2024).
Velazquez was Cleveland’s 2023 first-round pick, selected 23rd overall out of Huntington Beach High School. Originally drafted as a catcher, Velazquez was quick to convert to first baseman. However, it was his bat that mattered, and he batted at every level he played.
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Velazquez made his professional debut in the Arizona Complex League the year he was drafted, hitting two home runs in the six games he played while sporting an impressive 153 wRC+.
In his first full season in Cleveland’s system, Velazquez debuted at Single-A Lynchburg, where he hit 10 home runs while slashing .243/.362.414 with a 131 wRC+ in 82 games, good enough to earn an invitation to represent Cleveland in the Futures Game. There, he put on a prodigious display in the home run derby and amazed scouts with his exit velocity. He finished the season with a 19-game stint at High-A Lake County.
The powerhouse prospect got off to a slow start in the 2024 season, which began in Lake County. After a rough first two months in which he had a brutal BABIP of .212, despite all his other underlying data saying otherwise. He ended his unlucky streak with an incredible two and a half months, hitting .287/.357/.522 with 10 home runs and a 143 wRC+. This earned him a promotion to Double-A Akron, where he made one of the most impressive Double-A debuts in recent memory, collecting 12 hits in 22 at-bats with four home runs, four doubles and four walks, voted Eastern League Player of the Week. In his 28 games in Akron, he slashed .330/.405/.589, posting a career-high 188 wRC+.
Velazquez possesses a unique combination of power, athleticism, patience and touch. Thanks to improvements in his physical abilities over the past few years, he was able to withstand a full baseball season in 2025, and performed even better in his final month of the season.
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Now it’s time to determine who number five is in the Guardians’ busy farming system! Your options are below:
Jaison Chourio, OF (20 years)
2025 (CPX) 27 PA, .261/.370/.304, 0 HR, 1 SB, 14.8 BB%, 37.0 K%, 95 wRC+
2025 (A+): 353 PA, .235/.380/.284, 2 HR, 9 SB, 18.7 BB%, 21.8 K%, 103 wRC+
Chourio was lining up to be Cleveland’s top prospect after a sensational 2024, but he was slowed in 2025 by a nagging shoulder injury and had a very average season. He hopes to bounce back in 2026.
Braylon Doughty, RHP (20 years)
2025 (A): 22 GS, 85.1 IP, 3.48 ERA, 2.84 FIP, 27.3%, 6.4%, 1.25 WHIP
Cleveland’s competitive 2024 first-round pick, Doughty debuted ball all season and posted solid numbers during his age-19 season in Single-A, demonstrating elite control.
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Angel Genao, SS (21 years old)
2025 (CPX) 32 PA, .308/.438/.654, 3 HR, 0 SB, 18.8 BB%, 12.5 K%, 177 wRC+
2025 (AA): 341 PA, .259/.323/.359, 2 HR, 6 SB, 8.5 BB%, 15.8 K%, 103 wRC+
Had an average regular season in 2025 after missing the first two months with a shoulder sprain, which likely sapped his power after returning in June.
Cooper Ingle, C (23 years old)
2025 (AA) 403 PA, .273/.391/.443, 9 HR, 0 SB, 16.1 BB%, 17.4 K%, 148 wRC+
2025 (AAA) 107 PA, .207/.383/.329, 1 HR, 0 SB, 19.6 BB%, 16.7K%, 105 wRC+
Ingle showed excellent offensive tendencies for a receiver. Will his defense and power be enough to earn an opportunity in Cleveland this year?
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Jace LaViolette, OF (22 years old)
2025 (NCAA) 262 PA, .258/.427/.576, 18 HR, 7 SB, 21.8 BB%, 25.2K%, 120 wRC+
Cleveland’s first-round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, the 6-foot-6 LaViolette instantly becomes one of the system’s top power prospects. Strikeouts and contact were problematic, however.
Alfonsin Rosario, OF (21 years old)
2025 (A+) 354 PA, .268/.362/.490, 16 HR, 12 SB, 10.8 BB%, 25.1 K%, 139 wRC+
2025 (AA): 145 PA, .211/.303/.391, 5 HR, 2 SB, 10.3 BB%, 33.1 K%, 105 wRC+
One of Cleveland’s most impressive hitters in its minor league system during his time at High-A Lake County as a 20-year-old. Rosario possesses a unique combination of speed and power, but will need to overcome his strikeouts.
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Khal Stephen, RHP (23 years old)
with TOR 2025 (A) 7 GS, 39.1 IP, 2.06 ERA, 1.97 FIP, 31.4 K%, 4.6 BB%, 0.92 WHIP
with TOR 2025 (A+): 9 GS, 48.1 IP, 1.49 ERA, 2.70 FIP, 26.6 K%, 5.4 BB%, 0.85 WHIP
with TOR 2025 (AA): 1 GS, 4.0 IP, 6.35 ERA, 1.88 FIP, 11.1 K%, 5.6 BB%, 1.68 WHIP
2025 (AA): 4 GS, 11.1 IP, 9.00 ERA, 9.54 FIP, 21.9 K%, 3.9 BB%, 1.50 WHIP
Acquired from Toronto in the Shane Bieber trade, Stephen exploded through the minor league system in 2025 before hitting a wall in Double-A. He instantly became one of Cleveland’s top prospects.
SURVEY NOTE: We switched to Google Forms surveys to try to weed out voting spammers. Please vote below. Voting will close at 11:59 p.m. ET
