With seven teams in its minor league system, Cleveland has 165 players under contract heading into the 2026 season, so it’s a bit unfair to stop counting prospects at just the top 20.
Every year I pick some other non-top 20 prospects to keep an eye on and the track record has been pretty solid thus far. In last year’s article, I picked four players who made it to this year’s top 20 prospects and two more made it to the show (George Valera and Petey Halpin).
Here are some prospects who just missed the
cut from Covering the Corner’s top 20 and deserve some recognition as well. Prospects are listed by their proximity to MLB.
Catchers
Jacob Cozart, 23, C
Drafted in the second round out of NC State in the 2024 MLB Draft, scouts said Jacob Cozart was strong defensively. After struggling in a small sample size the year he was drafted, Cozart blossomed in 2025. putting up above average wRC+ numbers at both High-A and then at Double-A. To top that off, I’ve seen multiple scouting reports that are claiming he’s not only the best defensive catcher in Cleveland’s system, but Cozart is one of the best defensive catchers in minor league baseball. He threw out 37 attempted base thieves last year in 84 games played at catcher.
Bennett Thompson, 23, C
Thompson also was drafted in 2024 — in the 13th round as a more offense-first catcher. The offense impressed in 2025 as he posted a 118 wRC+ at Single-A Lynchburg, even stealing eight bases while slashing .269/.372/.352 and earning a cup of coffee at High-A Lake County to close out the season. He also threw out 32 baserunners, which wasn’t half bad.
Infielders
Christian Knapczyk, 24, 2B/SS
Cleveland’s fifth round pick in 2023, Knapczyk is a high-contact speedster. He improved his power numbers in 2025, blasting seven home runs at High-A, where he played good enough to earn a late season promotion to Double-A. Knapczyk hasn’t been super flashy, but he’s been above average at all three levels he’s played thus far, including posting a 102 wRC+ in his 25-game stint at Akron last year, where he walked an impressive 14.4% of the time while dropping his strikeout rate.
Juan Benjamin, 22, 2B/3B
A 2019 international signing out of the Dominican Republic, Benjamin has been a slow mover in Cleveland’s system, stalling at Single-A for two and a half seasons. Despite a sub-par 2024, his first season of his career that was below 100 wRC+, Cleveland promoted him to High-A Lake County for 2025 and it paid off. Benjamin flourished there, slashing .276/.365/.385 in 88 games with 18 stolen bases, good for a 116 wRC+ and lining him up to debut at Double-A this year.
Dean Curley, 21, SS
Cleveland’s second round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, Dean Curley played just nine games with Lynchburg in the Carolina League last year, but he also played a part in the Hillcats’ run to a Carolina League championship in the playoffs. Before that, Curley slashed .315/.435/.531 with Tennessee while bashing 14 home runs. Curley likely will be the opening day shortstop for Lake County this year.
Luke Hill, 21, 3B
llege Cleveland’s fourth round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, Hill got off to an extremely hot start after getting placed at Single-A Lynchburg, slashing an elite /.357/.459/.510 over 15 games. Hill has an excellent eye at the plate, walking more than he struck out in his final two college seasons and he kept that skill at Lynchburg, walking 17.7% of the time. He’ll likely begin 2026 at High-A Lake County.
Riley Nelson, 22, 1B
Cleveland’s fifth round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, Nelson had a spectacular final season with Vanderbilt, slashing .344/.450/.526 and he carried that over to a 15-game run with Single-A Lynchburg, slashing .316/.381/.474, good for a 149 wRC+. Nelson also is expected to begin at High-A Lake County.
Dauri Fernandez, 18, 2B/3B/SS
Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2024, Fernandez hit the ground running with the Dominican Summer League at age 17 with a 112 wRC+. He blossomed in his stateside debut, slashing .333/.398/.558 over 43 games with an impressive six home runs, nine doubles and four triples, exploding his ISO to .224. He earned a seven-game cup of coffee at full-season Lynchburg. He was Cleveland’s most impressive hitter at the complex league. Keep an eye on this one.
Gabriel Rodriguez, 18, SS
Signed internationally in 2024, Rodriguez appears to have the chops to stick at shortstop and has shown an incredible ability to get on base. After posting a ridiculous .506 on base percentage in his debut season in the DSL, Rodriguez had his best hitting performance in the Arizona Complex League last year, hitting .294 while maintaining an elite .393 OBP. Unlike many of Cleveland’s undersized international prospects, Rodriguez stands 6-foot-1 and has room to grow.
Rodny Rosario, 18, SS
Signed out of Venezuela for $230,000 in 2025, Rosario had the best offensive season of any Guardians prospect between both of the organization’s Dominican Summer League teams, slashing .307/.452/.464 with an impressive six triples and a pair of home runs in his age-17 season. The switch hitter walked as much as he struck out and should move to Arizona this year.
Outfielders
Petey Halpin, 23, CF
A third round pick by Cleveland in 2020, Halpin has been slightly above average almost every season in the Guardians’ system. He hit a career-high 14 home runs in his Triple-A debut in 2025 and earned an opportunity at the MLB level in September, where he showcased above average defense, baserunning and an excellent ability to get on base in a small sample size.
Wuilfredo Antunez, 23, RF
A 2019 international signing out of Venezuela, Antunez has done nothing but hit at every level he’s ever played at, never posting a wRC+ below 120. He slashed .275/.354/.420 spending the entire 2023 season at Single-A Lynchburg and Cleveland repeated him there in 2024, where he again played well, putting up a 127 wRC+. Antunez saw a power spike in 2025, blasting a career-high 18 home runs split between High-A Lake County and Double-A Akron, posting a wRC+ of 135 and 147 at each.
Tommy Hawke, 22, LF
Hawke was Cleveland’s sixth round pick in 2023 and spent his entire 2024 campaign at Single-A Lynchburg. He posted an elite walk-rate of 15.1% while swiping 37 bases over 88 games, slashing .263/.379/.347 with a 121 wRC+. Hawke is a contact-focused hitter, hitting just one home run last year. He’ll likely start 2025 at High-A.
Nick Mitchell, 22, CF
Acquired by Cleveland in the Andres Gimenez trade, Mitchell was above average repeating at Single-A Lynchburg, but impressed significantly after he was promoted to High-A Lake County, where he slashed .267/.380/.422, good for a 128 wRC+. While he only hit two home runs, Mitchell stole 30 bases and walked more than he struck out on the season.
Ryan Cesarini, 23, OF
Cesarini was selected in the 14th round of the 2024 MLB Draft and he was above average at Single-A Lynchburg last year with 33 stolen bases. He earned a late season promotion to High-A and played even better while there, slashing .292/.373/.469, good for an elite 138 wRC+. On the season, he stole 40 bases and smacked five home runs while almost walking more than he struck out.
Esteban Gonzalez, 22, OF
Gonzalez was a 2019 international signing out of Venezuela and he’s performed at almost every level, only requiring a repeat stint at the complex league in 2023, where he flourished. He was a staple of Lake County’s lineup in 2025, playing 110 games where he slashed .272/.336/.430 while stealing 24 bases and shellacking nine home runs.
Aaron Walton, 21, OF
Selected as a competitive balance pick in the second round of the 2025 MLB Draft, Walton made a 16-game stint at Single-A Lynchburg, where he slashed .238/.324/.397 with a home run, five doubles and a triple while helping the Hillcats win the Carolina League championship. Before that, Walton was a standout junior prospect out of Arizona, where he showcased an impressive all-round game while putting up strong numbers with a .320/.437/.589 slash, 14 home runs and 19 stolen bases. He was hit by a whopping 24 pitches that season as well. He’ll likely begin the 2026 campaign at High-A.
Nolan Schubart, 21, OF
Cleveland’s third round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, Schubart presents a stark change from the typical Guardians model, as he is the most strikeout-prone college hitter the team has drafted in recent memory. He’s also one of the most powerful sluggers, bashing a combined 59 home runs in his three seasons at Oklahoma State. He had an elite 1.351 OPS his sophomore season, but a 24.59% strikeout rate in college scared scouts. He whiffed 36% of the time in a 15-game stint at Lynchburg as well.
Robert Arias, 18, OF
Cleveland’s top international signing in 2024 out of the Dominican Republic, Arias showed great plate discipline in his Dominican Summer League debut, walking almost twice as much as he struck out. This past season, he again walked more than striking out, leading the team with 29 stolen bases in 46 games and slashed a solid .287/.389/.402. I expect him to make his full-season debut at Single-A this year to begin the 2026 campaign.
Did I miss any of Cleveland’s minor league players that you felt deserved a shoutout? Feel free to comment or share your opinion on the “best of the rest” below.
