Cleveland Guardians stand out minor leaguers heading into August

The Cleveland Guardians are being carried by their minor leaguers in 2022 but who’s next up?

The Cleveland Guardians have called up a whopping 12 rookies from the minor leagues this year. To say this team is being led by youth is an understatement, as we’re not even looking at second or third-year players right now either. The Guardians are in the midst of maybe their best crop of rookies ever, and they’re the stars of the season.

Who’s been called up this year? Well, here are the 12 names; Tanner Tully, Konnor Pilkington, Richie Palacios, Kirk McCarty, Bryan Lavastida, Steven Kwan, Nolan Jones, Oscar Gonzalez, Alex Call, Will Benson, Gabriel Arias, Trevor Stephan.

So who’s next up? That’s the question that’s been on my mind. We’re going to look at the Top 5 Players who are likely to be called up next, but right now we’re just looking at the guys doing the work in the minor league system.

Some names to keep an eye out for are Raymond Burgos, George Valera, Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, Bo Naylor, and Will Brennan. It should be noted that some guys, like Logan Allen were called up from Double-A to Triple-A mid-season, and his stats in Triple-A since his arrival a few starts ago haven’t matched what he was doing in Double-A just yet. So that’s why you may see some stat lines that aren’t blowing you away; yet.

Also, Jake Jewell is the only player in the minors that is on this list with big league experience. The 29-year-old is ready to help out the bullpen.

Single-A: Lynchburg

CF Jorge Burgos

312 AB, 4 HR, 50 RBI, 45 Runs, 5 SB, .272/.373/.372, .745 OPS,

SS Jake Fox

280 AB 3 HR, 34 RBI, 59 Runs, 15 SB, .268 /.415/.386 , .801 OPS,

Single-A: Lake County

SP Doug Nikhazy

3.31 ERA, 16 Games, 16 Games Started, 68.0 IP, 86 Strikeouts, 1.35 WHIP

RP Raymond Burgos

2.42 ERA, 26 Games, 44.2 IP, 44 Strikeouts, 1.14 WHIP

Double-A: Akron

RP Randy Labaut

3.70 ERA, 27  Games, 2 Saves, 48.2 IP, 63 Strikeouts, 1.13 Whip

RF George Valera

319 AB, 15 HR, 59 RBI, 63 Runs, 48 Walks, .263/.363/.473, .836 OBS

SP Tanner Burns

3.51 ERA, 13 Starts, 51.1 IP, 37 Strikeouts, 1.23 WHIP

SP Gavin Williams

1.69 ERA, 17 Starts, 79.2 IP, 106 Strikeouts, 0.95 WHIP

SP Tanner Bibee

2.34 ERA, 17 Starts, 84.2 IP, 110 Strikeouts,1.00 WHIP

RP Cade Smith

4.05 ERA, 32 Games, 40 IP, 67 Strikeouts, 1.33 WHIP

Triple-A – Columbus

SP Logan Allen

4.34 ERA, 17 Starts, 87 IP, 127 Strikeouts, 1.28 WHIP

C Bo Naylor

269 AB, 12 HR, 43 RBI, 49 Runs, 63 Walks, 15 SB, .279/.424, .509, 9.33 OPS

OF Will Brennan

365 AB, 9 HR, 83 RBI, 49 Runs, 40 Walks, 16 SB, .324/.386/.484, .870 OPS

C David Fry

278 AB, 13 HR, 55 RBI, 41 Runs, 19 Walks, .255/.312/.471, 783 OPS

SP Peyton Battenfield

3.31 ERA, 20 Starts, 114.1 IP, 76 Strikeouts, 1.20 WHIP

SP Nick Mikolajchak

2.36 ERA, 31 Games, 34.1 IP, 33 Strikeouts, 1.11 WHIP

RP Andrew Misiaszek

1.61 ERa, 28 Games, 2 Starts, 44.2 IP, 69 Strikeouts, 1.10 WIHP

RP Jake Jewell

2.66 ERA, 33 Games, 3 Saves, 40.2 IP, 43 Strikeouts, 1.03 WHIP

RP Kevin Kelly

2.37 ERA, 31 Games, 1 Start, 3 Saves, 38 IP, 45 Strikeouts, 1.32 WHIP