The Cleveland Guardians made a somewhat controversial selection with the No. 1 overall pick in the Major League Baseball Draft earlier this summer, selecting Travis Bazzana out of Oregon State.
A second baseman had never been selected No. 1 overall in the MLB Draft before Bazzana, but that gamble looks to already be paying off.
Bazzana is off to a solid start through 101 minor league at-bats, with three home runs, five stolen bases and a .369 on-base percentage.
And prospect evaluators are taking notice.
The Athletic’s Jim Bowden recently updated his ranking of the Top 50 prospects in the sport and slotted Bazzana in at No. 4 overall — behind Jackson Jobe and Max Clark of the Detroit Tigers and Walker Jenkins of the Minnesota Twins.
This is a great first ranking for Bazzana, especially considering that Jobe will likely graduate from this list early next season.
Bowden on Bazzana: “Travis Bazzana was the first pick in this year’s draft because he had the best hit tool in the class. His hitting brings back memories of Joe Mauer and Mark Teixeira when they were drafted in the first round in 2001. Bazzana has elite plate discipline, electric bat speed and special barrel awareness — and he’s a threat on the basepaths. I also like that he hits lefties and righties equally well.”
Though Bowden is high on Bazanna, MLB Pipeline isn’t quite on the same page, listing him as the No. 12 overall prospect.
However, it should be noted that MLB Pipeline’s list includes players like Junior Caminero and Dylan Crews, who recently made their MLB debuts, so Bazzana will likely climb up that list soon enough.
But Bazzana might not be too far behind the likes of Caminero and Crews. Already 22 years old, Bazzana has a projected MLB debut of 2025 per MLB Pipeline, and he would be a welcome addition near Jose Ramirez in a Guardians lineup that is already averaging 4.54 runs per game (13th-best in MLB).
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