Guardians of the Future Prospect Weekly: Velazquez hits 5 HR in 25 PA at Columbus, Favors posts 2.01 ERA in last 30 days
By Michael Morgan ·
Guardians of the Future Prospect Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Guardians farm system.
Ralphy Velazquez is the Hottest Hitter in the Minors
Ralphy Velazquez (AAA, 1B, Rank: 8) went 9-for-25 last week with five home runs, 10 RBI, and two walks against just three strikeouts, a line that is genuinely difficult to contextualize for a 21-year-old first baseman operating at Triple-A. That brings his last-30-day total to 16 home runs in 96 plate appearances, a .964 slugging percentage, and 33 RBI. He has 27 home runs on the combined season across Double-A and Triple-A, and the 20 he has logged at Columbus alone mark him as one of the more productive bats at the level regardless of age. He was also reportedly deployed in left field during at least one start this week, which fits a projection that already notes first base as the primary home with corner outfield as a secondary option depending on how the defense develops.
The 60 power grade and everyday projection have always been the foundation here, and this month is making the case that the hit tool is holding up better than the pessimistic reads would suggest. His season-long contact rate sits at 69.9 percent with a 50.7 percent swing rate, an aggressive profile that pairs with real zone feel rather than pure swing volume. The 45 hit tool grade is starting to look conservative given what he has done against upper-level arms since finishing a .317/.414/.566 line in 36 Double-A games earlier this year. The main concern remains what happens against premium velocity up in the zone, and prolonged exposure to that at the major league level will be the real test. But a 21-year-old with 27 home runs before September who can play a corner outfield spot in a pinch is not a player Cleveland can afford to ignore much longer. A big-league call at some point this season seems probable; after this week, the pressure to accelerate that conversation increased considerably.
Has Caden Favors Made an Adjustment?
Caden Favors (AA, LHP, Rank: 26) threw 5.1 scoreless innings last week, scattering three hits without a walk and punching out seven, a performance that extended one of the more compelling runs in the Guardians system this month. Over his last four starts he has covered 22.1 innings with a 2.01 ERA, a 0.90 WHIP, 26 strikeouts, and just four walks. His season ERA sits at 4.78 over 111 innings, so the recent sample is not a blip built on a small number of outings; it is a four-start stretch that looks genuinely different from what he was doing through July.
The five-pitch profile was never the problem. A four-seamer that sits 92-96 with above-average extension, a curveball grading at 55 that can steal strikes or generate chase, and a slider offering a harder shape alongside it give Favors enough variety to cycle through a lineup. What has changed over the last month is the command: his walk rate over that span is 4.5 per 100 batters faced, down sharply from a season-long 9.6 rate that had consistently inflated his pitch counts and led to early exits. The whiff rate over 30 days is at 29.9 percent, matching his season number, indicating the stuff was always there to miss bats; the walks were the issue, and they appear to be coming under control. At 24 with a realistic up-down or back-end starter projection, the development window is shorter than it would be for a younger arm. But a left-hander with five usable pitches who is suddenly throwing strikes at this rate inside his home park at Double-A is worth tracking as a potential 40-man candidate if the command holds into September.
Quick Hits
Jace LaViolette (AA, OF, Rank: 10) · drove in seven runs on six hits, including three home runs, across 23 plate appearances, adding two walks. He has six home runs over his last 30 days at Akron with a .514 slugging percentage in that stretch, and his combined season line sits at .232/.339/.464 with 22 home runs in 441 plate appearances. The strikeout rate remains a real concern at 37.9 percent on the year, but three home runs in a week from a 22-year-old with a 60 power grade and plus corner defense at Double-A keeps the everyday right field projection very much alive.
Nolan Schubart (AA, OF, Rank: 24) · homered three times in 17 plate appearances, driving in five while drawing five walks and striking out seven times. That is his seventh homer since arriving at Akron, and his Double-A line is now .291/.434/.573 through 129 plate appearances. The 58.1 percent contact rate on the season is the persistent fault line in his profile, but a 60 power grade paired with a 20.2 percent walk rate at Double-A is a combination that scouts cannot dismiss regardless of what the hit tool grades say.
George Valera (AAA, RF, Rank: 31) · went 5-for-12 with four doubles and a homer, knocking in five runs in 12 plate appearances. Over his last nine games he is slashing .371/.436/.886 with four home runs at Columbus, the best sustained stretch he has put together all year. His season-long Triple-A line sits at .245/.337/.407 with eight home runs, a profile that grades more as up-down depth than a genuine callup candidate, but stretches like this one are why the 55 power grade stays in the conversation.
Luke Hill (AA, 3B, Rank: 20) · went 5-for-16 with two home runs and four RBI, drawing two walks while striking out three times. He is hitting .368/.478/.684 over his last six Double-A games, a promising run for a player who has dealt with a step down in his walk rate since moving up from High-A. His combined season line across A+ and Double-A reads .267/.398/.538 with 13 home runs, and the 55 hit tool continues to look accurate when everything is clicking.
Welbyn Francisca (A+, SS, Rank: 15) · posted seven hits in 28 plate appearances with a homer, three RBI, and three walks. Over the last 30 days he is slashing .315/.390/.696 with nine home runs in 105 plate appearances at Lake County, a sustained increase in power that has pushed his High-A season totals to 15 home runs and a .559 slugging percentage in 245 PA. He hit three home runs in 428 plate appearances all of last year at the same level. The 45 power grade deserves a fresh look.
Dauri Fernandez (A+, 2B, Rank: 18) · collected three hits in 12 plate appearances during his first week at Lake County, two of them doubles plus a home run, driving in three. He was promoted from Low-A Hickory after posting 51 stolen bases at that level, and his High-A numbers are a tiny sample, but a 19-year-old switch-hitter who already has 52 steals on the season while showing flashes of extra-base pop is a player worth monitoring as he settles in at the new level.
Dean Curley (AA, SS, Rank: 19) · went 5-for-21 with a homer, three RBI, two walks, and a hit by pitch, striking out nine times in the week. The swing-and-miss is a constant companion for Curley, but so is the walk rate: he has drawn 98 walks on the season combined across High-A and Double-A, and his .431 on-base percentage across 460 combined plate appearances is legitimately special for a player his age at those levels. Fifteen home runs on the year round out a profile that plays as more complete than the strikeout total might suggest.
Braylon Doughty (AA, RHP, Rank: 4) · struck out five across 3.2 innings of scoreless work, generating 14 whiffs on 54 pitches. His last two Double-A starts have produced 6.2 scoreless innings with a 41.3 percent whiff rate over that span, a sharp number for a 20-year-old in his first extended look at the level. His combined season ERA sits at 3.32 across 89.1 innings between High-A and Double-A, with a 28.2 percent strikeout rate. The 60-grade curveball looks like a genuine out pitch at this level, and the package continues to point toward a No. 4 starter floor with room above it.
Justin Campbell (AAA, RHP, Rank: 27) · was activated from the 7-day injured list on August 23, returning from a left oblique strain that had kept him out since late June. He threw two innings in his first outing back, allowing no runs and walking one while striking out one. His work earlier this year across three levels produced a 2.40 ERA at High-A, a 2.70 ERA at Double-A, and now a scoreless Triple-A appearance; the development track looks strong if he can stay healthy through the rest of the season.
Franklin Gomez (AA, LHP, Rank: 28) · was promoted to Akron on August 21, his first Double-A assignment. His debut was rough: 2.1 innings, three walks, three strikeouts, and an ERA of 16.88 in that one outing. The 58 innings he threw at High-A with a 3.10 ERA and 66 strikeouts earned him the promotion, and one difficult outing should not define what has otherwise been a legitimate full-season debut. The adjustment to Double-A hitters requires time, and Gomez has the innings foundation to work through it.
Kahlil Watson (AAA, LF, Rank: 17) · went 2-for-17 with a homer, two RBI, three walks, and a hit by pitch in a week at the plate. He is hitting .234/.378/.438 over his last 30 days at Columbus with four home runs and 13 RBI, which carries a useful on-base figure even during a contact-light stretch. Watson has nine stolen bases at the major league level this year alongside 16 home runs at Triple-A, and the 60 speed and 55 field grades still give him a viable bench or fourth-outfielder path if the bat does not fully develop.