Guardians considering exciting prospect call-up for Wild Card round

Matt Sullivan

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Guardians considering exciting prospect call-up for Wild Card round image

The Cleveland Guardians have been the talk of the baseball world in September, as they officially completed the greatest comeback in MLB division history. At one point, being down 15.5 games to the Detroit Tigers, and now winning the AL Central. No team has ever made such a comeback in MLB history.

However, fortunately for the Tigers, with the expanded playoff field, they've made the postseason. But their first matchup will be a trip to Cleveland to face the Guardians for the Wild Card round in the American League.

With the Guardians yet to finalize their postseason roster, Zack Meisel of The Athletic shared a very interesting and exciting roster move the Guardians could make. Cleveland could call up a top prospect to make his MLB debut in the playoffs, a bold decision that is under consideration for the Guardians this postseason.

Guardians considering bold decision on a top prospect for the playoffs

"Two members of the taxi squad at Progressive Field today: Chase DeLauter and Dom Nunez," Meisel reports. "They're under consideration for the playoff roster."

This report from Meisel is very interesting. DeLauter is a top prospect in the Guardians' farm system and is a 23-year-old outfielder who's struggled to stay healthy in his minor league career.

Drafted in the first round of the 2022 MLB Draft, DeLauter made it to Triple-A, where he had a .278 batting average and an .859 OPS in 34 games this season. While he wasn't called up this season, he is up for consideration for the playoff roster.

In his entire minor-league career, DeLauter has hit .302 with 20 home runs and 87 RBIs in 504 at-bats with an .888 OPS. If the Guardians do decide to call him up to the active roster for the playoffs, his MLB debut could come in a massive spot.

Recently, Ryan Weathers of the San Diego Padres in 2020, Shane McClanahan of the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020, and Alex Kirilloff of the Minnesota Twins in 2020 have made their MLB debuts in the postseason.

More: How one decision sparked the Guardians' incredible AL Central comeback

Before the COVID-19-shortened season, Adalberto Mondesi of the Kansas City Royals in 2015 was the last player to make his big league debut in the playoffs. Before him, Mark Kiger of the Athletics, who only played in the playoffs in his MLB career, was the last player to make his debut in the playoffs.

In MLB history, only five players have made their big league debuts in the playoffs, all of which have come in the 21st century.

If Cleveland decides to call up DeLauter for their 2025 postseason run, and he plays in a game, he'd be just the sixth MLB player to make his big league debut in the playoffs, and he'd be the first player in the last decade to do so in a non-COVID year.

It's something to monitor as the Guardians and Stephen Vogt make their final postseason roster decisions. DeLauter could make some incredible MLB history and debut in the Majors. DeLauter making an instant impact in the Majors in the playoffs would hardly be surprising for how this Guardians team has played this season.

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Matt Sullivan

Matt Sullivan is a freelance writer for The Sporting News, predominantly covering MLB. Matt is a native of Pennsylvania and has worked with Athlon Sports, Last Word on Sports, and other outlets.