Cleveland Guardians Prospect Watch: All Eyes Are On C.J. Kayfus

C.J. Kayfus is absolutely shredding Triple-A pitching; the time has come to promote him to Cleveland.

The time has come to promote C.J. Kayfus.

With the Cleveland Guardians floundering on offense and the Detroit Tigers looking like the early juggernaut of the AL Central (not to mention the presence of the surging Twins and frisky Royals), the team is in desperate need of a jolt. Sure, David Fry and Lane Thomas will be rejoining the lineup soon, but there’s no reason Kayfus shouldn’t be in Cleveland immediately.

With two more hits (including his fourth home run in Triple-A) on Wednesday, Kayfus raised his batting average with Columbus to .364 and his OPS to an astounding 1.086. You can nitpick his contact/chase metrics all you want at this level, but what more do you really need to see in order to promote him to the big leagues?

With Travis Bazzana now out 8-10 weeks and his potential Cleveland debut in serious jeopardy for 2025, Kayfus is the one true offensive prospect that could help turn this thing around. And it’s not like this has come out of nowhere: the 2023 third-round pick is a career .300 hitter across three minor-league seasons.

With an exceptional barrel rate and strong swing decisions, Kayfus has the makings of a bat that will play at the major-league level. He doesn’t wield overwhelming power, which has been working against him in prospect rankings given his status as a first baseman. But like so many other Cleveland hitters, he gravitates more towards making good contact and tapping into that raw power when possible.

Given the slop that is currently percolating at the bottom of the Guardians’ lineup, Kayfus could be exactly what the team needs. He’s tearing up Triple-A, knows how to get on base, and is getting time in right field, where the Guardians are in an eternal struggle to find help.

What’s not to like?