The Cleveland Guardians are able to repeatedly in the postseason picture and have won the American League Central three out of the last four seasons thanks to the organization’s ability to find, draft, sign, and develop young players.
They may not have one of baseball’s top prospects, but they do have an incredibly deep farm system. That’s not just an opinion, though; those are thoughts of notable organization members around baseball.
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MLB.com recently conducted a poll of executives across baseball, and the Guardians received plenty of praise in it, especially in one critical area.
One of the questions the executives were asked was, Who had the most underrated farm system in MLB. The Guardians may not have finished at the top of the voting, but they did finish in a respectable position.
Cleveland finished fifth on this question, receiving 6.8 percent of the votes. The organizations to finish above the Guardians were the Cincinnati Reds (9.1 percent), Chicago Cubs (9.1 percent), Miami Marlins (11.4 percent), and the Pittsburgh Pirates (13.6 percent).
Jul 12, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; A general stock view of the Cleveland Guardians logo is seen during a game against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images
When looking at Cleveland’s top prospects, two immediately jump out as elite: Chase DeLauter and Travis Bazzana.
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Even though DeLauter has missed plenty of development time due to a plethora of injuries, he’s still a former first-round pick and owns a career .888 OPS at the minor league level.
Obviously, Bazzana is the top prospect in Cleveland’s farm system, having been the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. Bazzana has shown some encouraging development through his first year and a half in the minors and should be in line to make his big-league debut at some point in 2026.
However, Cleveland’s farm system is, in fact, deep, as the executives voted on.
For example, one of the most promising pitching prospects in the organization, Josh Hartle, recorded a 2.54 ERA across High-A and Double-A during the 2025 season. He’s ranked as Cleveland’s No. 25 prospect according to MLB Pipeline.
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Kahlil Watson has hit 140 extra-base hits over his five-year minor league career. After being promoted to Triple-A in the middle of last season, the outfielder logged a .834 OPS and could be a true option for Cleveland’s big-league roster in 2026. He’s ranked as the organization’s No. 18 prospect.
Those are just two examples of talent the Guardians have in their farm system that should get more attention. The executives who voted in this poll are spot on that Cleveland’s organization is underrated and, in some ways, undervalued.