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Top Guardians Prospect Poised to Make MLB History in Postseason
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- Top Guardians Prospect Poised to Make MLB History in Postseason
Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images
A top prospect for the Cleveland Guardians has a chance to make postseason history.
The Guardians have called up outfielder Chase DeLauter—their No. 2 prospect and baseball's 54th overall, according to MLB.com —for their Wild Card series against the Detroit Tigers .
DeLauter did not play in the regular season, and as The Athletic's Zack Meisel points out, the 23-year-old could become just the sixth player in MLB modern era history to make his big league debut in the postseason.
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"It's a dream come true just to be here and be a part of the team, and have a chance to play in some meaningful games," DeLauter said prior to his call-up.
The other five include:
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Pitcher Shane McLanahan with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020
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Pitcher Ryan Weathers with the San Diego Padres in 2020
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Outfielder Alex Kirilloff with the Minnesota Twins in 2020
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Infielder Adalberto Mondesi for the Kansas City Royals in 2015
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Infielder Mark Kiger for the Oakland Athletics in 2006
Injury-Plagued Journey to the Postseason Roster
Selected 16th overall in the 2022 MLB Draft, DeLauter slashed .278/.383/.476 with five home runs and eight doubles in 34 Triple-A games in 2025. He hasn't played in a minor league game since July 11 due to wrist surgery.
"He would have debuted by now. Heck, he might be hitting in the middle of Cleveland's order by now. Instead, as has been the case for several years, injuries interfered with his development," wrote Meisel. "He's basically the patient in the board game Operation. Since the Guardians drafted him in 2022, he has had foot surgery, a hamstring strain, a sprained big toe, a fractured foot, core muscle surgery and a hamate bone excision."
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DeLauter is not in the starting lineup for Tuesday's Wild Card Game 1 against the Tigers.
The Guardians bring incredible momentum into the postseason series against their American League Central rivals. Cleveland trailed Detroit by 15.5 games at one point and had just a 0.2% chance of winning the division on Sept. 1. But the Guardians went 20-7 in September to overtake the Tigers and capture the AL Central crown.
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