Alex Clemmey is our No. 14 Guardians prospect. Who should be No. 15?

Alex Clemmey is our No. 14 prospect, earning 32% of the vote on February 9th and beating out the competition by just 18 votes.

Clemmey was the Cleveland Guardians’ second round pick in the 2023 MLB draft, selected out of Bishop Hendricken High School in Warwick, Rhode Island

Standing 6-foot-6, Clemmey has an absolute nuke for a left hand as a starting pitcher, sitting in the mid to upper 90s with room for more. He also had a pretty nasty curveball and a developing changeup.

With Clemmey, it’s all about the ceiling. With his frame, elite spin rates, velocity and age, he could become a superstar. But there’s also the potential that it doesn’t work out, whether it be due to injury or the fact that command is still one of his biggest flaws.

In recent years, Cleveland has preferred to draft pitchers that already had elite command of the strike zone, but were possibly undervalued due to lower velocities. They then turned those pitchers into studs by adding some oomph to their fastballs (cough, cough, Shane Bieber, Tanner Bibee, etc.)

With Clemmey, the velocity is already there, but inconsistencies with his delivery led to some control issues. He earned Gatorade Player of the Year and had a 0.59 ERA his senior season, but had several starts with multiple walks. His stuff was good enough for the walks not to hurt him. That won’t be the case at the pro level, at least for long.

Clemmey did not make his pro debut after Cleveland drafted him, but he did make an appearance in the fall instructional league.

Look for him to make his pro debut this season, likely in the Arizona Complex League (which starts a month earlier than before). Who knows, if he does well, he could finish the season at the full-season level somewhere and could easily jump into the top 10 of our rankings next season.

Deyvison De Los Santos, 1B/3B (Age 20)

2023 (AA): 481 PA, .254/.297/.431, 20 HR, 4 SB, 5.2 BB%, 26.0 K%, 88 wRC+

Selected by Cleveland in the 2023 Rule 5 Draft out of Arizona’s farm system, the powerful De Los Santos will need to spend the entire 2024 season at the MLB level or be returned.

Jose Devers, SS/3B (Age 20)

2023 (A): 458 PA, .252/.345/.398, 11 HR, 34 SB, 10.5 BB%, 20.1 K%, 113 wRC+

.Cousin of Red Sox 3B Rafael Devers, Jose made his full-season debut in 2023 and showcased impressive speed on the basepaths and some decent pop.

Angel Genao, SS/3B (Age 19)

2023 (A): 316 PA, .263/.345/.385, 4 HR, 6 SB, 10.8 BB%, 15.5 K%, 110 wRC+

Impressed in his first full-season at Single-A as a teenager in 2023. Was one of the youngest players at the level and was above average with a 110 wRC+.

Petey Halpin, OF (Age 21)

2023 (AA): 510 PA, .243/.312/.372, 9 HR, 12 SB, 9.2 BB%, 24.7 K%, 88 wRC+

Spent his age-21 season at Double-A, where he had his first below-average season, but at least he stayed healthy in 2023 with a career-high 113 games played.

Parker Messick, LHP (Age 23)

2023: (A) 13 GS, 56.2 IP, 3.02 ERA, 2.73 FIP, 26.0 K%, 6.0 BB%
2023: (A+) 11 GS, 65.0 IP, 4.43 ERA, 4.86 FIP, 26.3 K%, 8.8 BB%

Cleveland’s second round pick in 2022, Messick showcased consistent stuff at both Lynchburg and Lake County in his debut season while staying healthy.

Rafael Ramirez Jr., SS (Age 18)

2023 (CPX): 190 PA, .250/.453/.426, 4 HR, 6 SB, 26.3 BB%, 28.4 K%, 133 wRC+

Impressed as a 17-year-old in the Arizona Complex League in 2023 and could be a fast-riser in prospect rankings. Ramirez Jr. is the son of former MLB All-Star Rafael Ramirez.

Cade Smith, RHP (Age 24)

2023: (AA) 17 G, 22.0 IP, 2.86 ERA, 2.73 FIP, 31.5 K%, 9.8 BB%
2023: (AAA) 30 G, 40.2 IP, 4.65 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 37.1 K%, 10.7 BB%

Reliever standing 6-foot-5 with an elite strikeout rate and mid 90s velocity. Smith was added to the 40-man roster and should help Cleveland’s bullpen in 2024.

Jose Tena, SS (Age 22)

2023 (AA): 362 PA, .260/.353/.375, 4 HR, 16 SB, 11.3 BB%, 28.7 K%, 103 wRC+
2023 (AAA): 66 PA, .350/.394/.667, 4 HR, 0 SB, 6.1 BB%, 25.8 K%, 157 wRC+
2023 (MLB): 34 PA, .226/.294/.290, 0 HR, 0 SB, 8.8 BB%, 38.2 K%, 66 wRC+

In a crowded middle infield, Tena was slightly above average in Double-A, then had a great Triple-A performance in a small sample size before making his MLB debut in 2023.

Khalil Watson, SS (Age 20)

2023 (A+ MIA): 243 PA, .206/.337/.362, 7 HR, 14 SB, 14.4 BB%, 28.0 K%, 103 wRC+
2023 (A+ CLE): 98 PA, .233/.306/.442, 5 HR, 11 SB, 8.2 BB%, 24.5 K%, 107 wRC+

Acquired in the Josh Bell trade, Watson is a middle-infielder with incredible athleticism and power who has been troubled by attitude, contact and strikeout issues.

Ryan Webb, LHP (Age 24)

2023: (A+) 17 GS, 82.0 IP, 3.29 ERA, 3.70 FIP, 23.8 K%, 9.7 BB%
2023: (AFL) 6 GS, 22.2 IP, 4.37 ERA, 3.97 FIP, 37.8 K%, 14.7 BB%

A fourth round pick in 2021 who had to recover from Tommy John surgery, Webb has shown flashes of brilliance and most recently led the 2023 AFL in strikeouts.