One question has loomed large since the Cleveland Guardians selected Travis Bazzana with the first overall pick of the 2024 MLB Draft: When will Bazzana reach the big leagues?
Bazzana is considered to be the Guardians' top prospect (and the No. 16 prospect in all of baseball), according to MLB Pipeline. After spending most of the 2025 campaign with the Double-A Akron RubberDucks, he was recently promoted to the Triple-A Columbus Clippers, placing him one level below the majors.
That means an answer to the aforementioned question may soon be revealed.
Guardians writer anticipates a midseason call-up for Bazzana in 2026
One factor, though, has gotten in the way of Bazzana's upward trajectory through the Guardians' minor-league system: the higher level of competition in Triple-A.
Since joining to the Clippers on Aug. 11, Bazzana has hit just .182 (despite having a .393 on-base percentage) with zero home runs and six RBIs across 66 at-bats in 19 games. According to The Athletic's Zack Meisel, that may put Bazzana in a position to prove he is more comfortable at that level before receiving a call-up around midseason in 2026.
"It’s been a slow start for Bazzana at Triple-A Columbus," Meisel wrote. "Should that continue, the guess here would be he starts next season in Columbus and breaks through to the majors in June or thereabouts."
That could change if Bazzana finishes the 2025 season on a high note, though Meisel believes speeding up his timeline is a move the Guardians are unlikely to make.
"But what if he torments pitchers for the final two and a half weeks? Could he parlay that into an impressive spring and have the Guardians considering whether to anoint him their Opening Day second baseman? Nah, probably not, though if he were to break camp with the club and then win AL Rookie of the Year, the Guardians would net an extra early draft pick," Meisel wrote.
"Either way, a strong finish would be beneficial for last year’s top overall pick, who lost two months of action this summer to an oblique injury."
Across three minor-league levels, Bazzana has hit .237 with five home runs, 31 RBIs and 61 runs scored in 77 regular-season games this year.