Guardians of the Future Prospect Weekly: Velazquez's Ridiculous August, Francisca's Power Surge at Lake County
By Michael Morgan ·
Guardians of the Future Prospect Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Guardians farm system.
Velazquez Is Lapping the Field in Columbus
Ralphy Velazquez (AAA, 1B, Rank: 3) went 8-for-29 this week with a home run, eight RBI, and five walks, a relatively modest line by his own recent standards but one that still pushed his last-30-day numbers into territory that is difficult to contextualize. Over that span he has posted a .894 slugging percentage with 14 home runs and 34 RBI across 101 plate appearances at Columbus, hitting .388 with a .465 on-base percentage while striking out in only 16.8 percent of his plate appearances. His combined season line across Double-A and Triple-A sits at .296/.383/.557 with 28 home runs in 501 plate appearances, and the 21 he has accumulated at Triple-A alone would rank among the more productive power outputs at the level for any age. He is 21 years old.
The scouting picture here has always centered on a 60 power grade paired with a hit tool graded at 55, and the last month is making the case that both are tracking right. His swing rate sits at 50.4 percent on the season, which is aggressive, and his contact rate of 69.7 percent is the real variable that will define his big-league outcome. The swing can get long and steep, especially against premium velocity up in the zone, and that exposure at the major league level will be the genuine test of whether he profiles as a first-division regular or settles into something more platoon-adjacent. For now, those are future questions. A 21-year-old first baseman posting a near-.900 slugging percentage over a 22-game stretch at Triple-A does not leave much room for organizational patience, and a September call or a very short leash on his Columbus stay into 2027 both seem like live outcomes at this point.
Francisca Hits His Way Into a Different Conversation at Lake County
Welbyn Francisca (A+, SS, Rank: 15) went 8-for-28 this week with two home runs, a pair of doubles, five RBI, and two walks, including a grand slam that highlighted back-to-back multi-hit games. The week was part of a scorching August: over his last 30 days he has hit .344 with a .698 slugging percentage, eight home runs, and 16 RBI across 107 plate appearances at Lake County, adding 10 doubles in that span for good measure. His full High-A season line stands at .289/.366/.565 with 17 home runs and 13 doubles in 273 plate appearances, with a combined mark of .280/.377/.542 including his stint in rookie ball. He is 20 years old and has been at High-A for most of the summer.
Coming into 2026, Francisca graded as a 45 hit, 45 power switch-hitter with enough athleticism and zone feel to project as a useful shortstop, with the honest ceiling pegged at a second-division regular if the bat kept climbing. The power production this month has moved faster than that projection anticipated. His swing rate has crept up to 53.6 percent over the last 30 days, which is aggressive, and his contact rate of 70.2 percent in that stretch is consistent with his season-long 70.6 mark. The strikeout rate is manageable at 22.4 percent over the last month, and the walk rate of 10.3 percent shows enough zone awareness to prevent the aggression from becoming purely volatile. The real question is how much of the power surge survives the jump to Double-A, where spin quality and sequencing will stress the hit tool in ways Lake County hasn't. But a 20-year-old shortstop with 17 homers and a .565 slugging percentage in his first High-A season is a performance that pushes internal grade conversations forward, and I'd take the over on those 45 power and 45 hit grades right now.
Quick Hits
- Jaison Chourio (AA, OF, Rank: 6) · collected nine hits in 25 plate appearances with two doubles, a triple, three RBI, and two walks, striking out seven times. The .365 on-base percentage for the season reflects a player whose value is built on walk rates and contact quality rather than power; his 28 steals on the year remain a carrying tool alongside the 13.1 percent walk rate at Akron. The .399 slugging percentage at Double-A is the number that will draw scrutiny as he moves forward, given a profile that needs at least average gap production to avoid sliding toward a bench-only outcome.
- Kody Huff (AAA, C, Rank: 32) · had his best week of the month: seven hits in 24 plate appearances with three doubles, a triple, four RBI, and four walks against just three strikeouts. He is hitting .264/.381/.511 across 432 plate appearances at Columbus this season, a substantial leap from the .222/.301/.330 line he posted at the same level in 2025. The contact rate (76 percent on the season) has held steady, and the 14.8 percent walk rate represents a real improvement in patience. He is an up-down catcher profile with a 45 hit tool and fringe-average power, but the production this year makes a credible case that the OBP gains are sustainable.
- Dauri Fernández (A+, SS, Rank: 18) · went 6-for-23 with five doubles, three RBI, and three walks in his week at Lake County, which is a remarkable extra-base hit distribution for a 19-year-old with a 40 power grade. His recent form over 30 days shows a .532 slugging percentage in 68 plate appearances at High-A, driven almost entirely by gap contact rather than home-run power. The 57 stolen bases on the combined season across Low-A and High-A are a real carrying tool, and his 55 hit grade projects to be the engine. Still very young for the level and trending in the right direction.
- Aaron Walton (AA, OF, Rank: 22) · drove in four runs on seven hits in 28 plate appearances, with three of those hits leaving the yard. His six home runs over the last 30 days at Akron push his combined season total to 21, with a .529 slugging percentage in that stretch. The strikeout rate remains the persistent concern, 10 punchouts in 28 plate appearances this week and 25.8 percent on the season at Double-A, and his contact rate of 72.8 percent over the last month pairs with a 41.8 percent swing rate that suggests he is being selective but still struggling to make consistent contact when he swings. A 60 athlete with 55 raw power who can cover center field is worth watching, but the hit tool (graded 45) will determine whether the power plays or gets buried by strikeouts at higher levels.
- Dean Curley (AA, SS, Rank: 19) · went 6-for-22 with two doubles, three RBI, and four walks, striking out seven times. His last 30 days at Akron have produced a .544 slugging percentage and five home runs across 93 plate appearances, with a .409 on-base percentage in that stretch driven by a 14 percent walk rate. The swing is still extremely selective at 35.3 percent over the last month, which pairs with a 72.7 percent contact rate to create a profile where every missed swing stings a little more. Still, a 15-homer, 102-walk season in the minors at 22 is not a player to dismiss even if the strikeout rate (30.3 percent on the combined season) remains elevated.
- Nolan Schubart (AA, 1B, Rank: 24) · slugged four home runs in 28 plate appearances with six RBI, also drawing three walks. That pushed his last-30-day total to 10 home runs in 97 plate appearances at Akron, with a .654 slugging percentage over that stretch. The contact rate is the ceiling-limiter here: 57.9 percent on the season, which is well below average and tracks with a 34.2 percent strikeout rate. Twelve strikeouts in 28 plate appearances this week is a consistent pattern rather than an outlier. He carries a 60 power grade and has 32 home runs on the combined season, but the hit tool grades at 40 for good reason, and upper-level pitchers will continue to test whether he can shorten the path enough to survive.
- Juneiker Caceres (A+, OF, Rank: 2) · had a short but productive week: 4-for-13 with a double, three RBI, two walks, and one strikeout in 13 plate appearances. His contact skills remain the standout feature of an already advanced profile, with a season-long 83.6 percent contact rate and just 43 strikeouts across 329 combined plate appearances at Low-A and High-A. The power at High-A (one home run in 92 plate appearances at Lake County) lags behind what he showed at Low-A (10 home runs in 237 plate appearances), though the walk rate has actually improved at the higher level. He is 19, ranked second in the system, and the bat-first corner outfield projection with an everyday ceiling looks well-grounded in the production.
- Justin Campbell (AAA, RHP, Rank: 31) · got through 2.2 innings this week, facing 12 batters with five strikeouts, three hits, and no runs allowed. He got eight swinging misses on 49 pitches. His season ERA across three levels sits at 2.38 in 56.2 innings, with a 31.3 percent strikeout rate against batters faced. The slider (graded 55) is the separator in his arsenal, and the command (graded 50) has been sharp at Triple-A, where he has walked just one batter in five innings across two starts. The fastball is closer to average than dominant, but the combination of multiple pitch shapes and improving strike-throwing gives him a legitimate back-of-the-rotation case.
- Austin Peterson (AAA, RHP, Rank: 35) · threw five innings this week, allowing two earned runs on five hits with one walk and four strikeouts, picking up 10 swinging misses along the way. His last-30-day ERA at Columbus sits at 3.65 across 24.2 innings, with a walk rate of just 3.0 percent over that stretch, which is very much on brand for a pitcher whose 70 command grade is the carrying tool. The 4.53 ERA on the season at Triple-A reflects an adjustment period to upper-level contact, but the underlying command profile and four-pitch mix continue to point toward a fifth-starter or up-down arm who can eat innings with precision.
- Franklin Gomez (AA, LHP, Rank: 26) · threw four innings in his week at Akron, striking out six on 56 pitches with one earned run, four hits, and one walk. He got 12 swinging misses, the most encouraging number in the line given the sweeper's potential (graded 55) to miss bats at the next level. His transition to Double-A has been rocky: an 8.10 ERA across his two starts there, compared to a 3.10 ERA in 58 innings at High-A earlier this season. At 21 with a five-pitch mix and a track record of generating ground balls, the underlying tools point toward a long reliever or back-end starter. The jump in competition has challenged the command (graded 45), and that is the developmental thread to pull going forward.
- Joey Oakie (A+, RHP, Rank: 13) · made his High-A debut after being promoted from Low-A on August 27. He threw two innings in his first Lake County appearance, allowing three earned runs on two hits with one walk and two strikeouts, an ERA of 13.50 in that small sample. His Low-A season covered 45.1 innings across 13 games with a 6.75 ERA and 56 strikeouts against 42 walks, a strikeout rate that reflects real swing-and-miss stuff paired with command that has been the persistent challenge. The promotion is a developmental push rather than a reward for sustained dominance, and the command picture at High-A will be the early measuring stick.