Arizona Fall League Prospect Report: Cleveland’s ‘Bash Brothers’ Strike Again

Image credit: Kyle Manzardo (Photo by Bill Mitchell)

Kyle Manzardo, 1B, Guardians: Cleveland made a series of trades at this past summer’s deadline to add interesting prospects to a system that was already plenty interesting. One of those prospects was Manzardo, who came over from Tampa Bay in the deal that brought Aaron Civale to the Rays. Manzardo missed a chunk of time with a shoulder injury, which led to an AFL stint to help make up the lost at-bats. He’s been excellent all fall, and put together a finishing flourish on Thursday, with a 4-for-4 performance that helped push his Peoria squad into the playoffs. Manzardo’s day included his sixth AFL home run and four more RBIs, which upped his AFL total to 19.

Ryan Bliss, 2B, Mariners: Bliss moved from the D-backs to the Mariners in the summertime deal that brought Paul Sewald to the eventual NL pennant-winners. Between the two organizations, Bliss, an Auburn alum, racked up 164 hits, the fourth-most in the minors. On Thursday, Bliss went 2-for-3 with a double and a triple. The three-bagger was his first of the fall. He had a pair of RBIs as well, which helped send Peoria past Salt River for the last AFL playoff spot.

Benny Montgomery, OF, Rockies: Montgomery spent the entire season at High-A Spokane, where he failed to include much impact with his contact. In the Fall League, that script has flipped. The outfielder went 1-for-5 on Thursday with a 438-foot home run, his third longball of the fall. His Salt River team fell to Peoria, ending their regular season just short of the league’s final playoff bid. Montgomery’s final AFL was .333/.436/.500 with a pair of doubles, three homers and 10 stolen bases.

Chase DeLauter, OF, Guardians: DeLauter and Kyle Manzardo have served this fall as Peoria’s version of the bash brothers. Both Cleveland prospects missed significant time in 2023 with injuries—DeLauter’s was to his foot—and both have spent the last six weeks crushing baseballs in dry heat. DeLauter—a James Madison alum—added three hits in Peoria’s playoff-clinching win. He scored twice as well. Heading into the playoffs, DeLauter’s 27 RBIs are the most in the AFL.

Caleb Durbin, 2B, Yankees: Entering Thursday’s AFL finale, Durbin needed three stolen bases to tie the league’s all-time stolen base mark. He didn’t achieve that goal, but it’s admittedly difficult to steal bases when you hit balls over the fence. The Braves-turned-Yankees farmhand swatted his third longball of the fall on Thursday and finished the campaign with a .353 batting average and 30 hits. His 21 SBs are tied with Eric Young Jr. for the second-most in AFL history.

Jack Perkins, RHP, Athletics: Oakland sent an interesting group of arms to the Fall League, and Perkins finished with some exciting stats. He spun a scoreless inning with a pair of strikeouts on Thursday, bringing his final AFL ledger to 15 Ks in 12.1 shutout frames. Perkins was selected out of Indiana in 2022 with Oakland’s fifth-round pick. In the regular year and in the fall he struggled with control and command, walking 47 in 107.2 innings with Lansing and Midland and another six more with Mesa.

Thursday’s Top Performers

Player	Team	ORG	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	Notes
Roberts, Caleb	SRR	ARI	4	1	2	0	0	1	.203	.381	.297	2 2B
Alcántara, Kevin	MSS	CHC	4	0	1	0	0	0	.256	.330	.535	2B
Trice, Carter	MSS	CHC	3	1	1	1	0	2	.125	.176	.375	HR
DeLauter, Chase	PEJ	CLE	5	2	3	1	0	0	.299	.385	.529
Manzardo, Kyle	PEJ	CLE	4	2	4	4	0	0	.272	.340	.565	HR
Montgomery, Benny	SRR	COL	5	1	1	2	0	1	.333	.436	.500	HR
Ramos, Bryan	GDD	CWS	4	2	2	0	0	1	.267	.337	.430	SB
Bigbie, Justice	SRR	DET	4	2	3	2	0	0	.292	.373	.375	HR
Alexander, CJ	SUR	KCR	4	0	2	1	0	0	.213	.291	.553	2 2B
Nuñez, Nasim	PEJ	MIA	5	2	2	2	0	0	.253	.362	.291
Brown Jr., Eric	SUR	MIL	4	2	2	1	0	2	.297	.390	.462	2B, HR
Clarke, Wes	SUR	MIL	3	0	2	1	0	1	.297	.435	.568	2B
Cossetti, Andrew	GDD	MIN	4	1	1	3	0	2	.103	.278	.310	HR
Durbin, Caleb	MSS	NYY	4	1	1	1	0	0	.353	.456	.588	HR
Armenteros, Lazaro	MSS	OAK	3	1	1	0	0	1	.167	.351	.190	2B
Brannigan, Jack	SRR	PIT	4	1	1	2	0	3	.177	.290	.405	HR
Marsee, Jakob	PEJ	SDP	3	1	1	1	2	0	.391	.508	.707	2B, CS
Bliss, Ryan	PEJ	SEA	5	0	2	2	0	1	.239	.368	.296	2B, 3B
Palmegiani, Domiano	SUR	TOR	4	1	1	2	0	0	.263	.366	.575	HR

Player	Team	ORG	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Notes
Kachmar, Chris	MSS	CHC	1.1	1	0	0	0	0	2	5.40
Eder, Jake	GDD	CHWS	2	2	1	1	0	2	0	6.11
Carver, Ross	PEJ	CLE	3	2	1	1	1	2	4	4.50
Hanner, Bradley	PEJ	CLE	2	2	0	0	0	0	2	1.59
Williams, Case	SRR	COL	2.2	5	3	3	1	1	2	3.18
Guilfoil, Tyler	MSS	HOU	3.2	1	1	1	0	2	6	6.87	W
Chaney, Chase	SCO	LAA	5	7	4	4	2	0	3	11.81	L
Williams, Kendall	GDD	LAD	2	2	2	2	0	1	1	5.30
Carr, Jordan	GDD	MIN	3	5	3	3	2	0	5	2.57	L
Taylor, Troy	PEJ	SEA	1.2	1	0	0	0	0	3	1.74	W
Paniagua, Inohan	SCO	STL	3	0	0	0	0	1	4	4.86
Bratt, Mitch	SUR	TEX	4	1	0	0	0	2	4	6.46	W