The Cleveland Guardians got some encouraging news about Travis Bazzana on Saturday. Their top prospect is finally getting back to baseball activities after dealing with an oblique injury since May.
Chris Antonetti, the team’s President of Baseball Operations, offered the most detailed update yet on where things stand with their prized first-round pick.
“He’s started to progress to baseball activities and started to do some throwing, running, and swinging. He’s starting to build up that progression, but he’s still a few weeks away from games.”
It’s been a frustrating stretch for Bazzana, who was hitting .252/.362/.433 with a .795 OPS in 127 at-bats for Triple-A Akron when the injury hit. Those numbers might not jump off the page, but they represented solid progress for a player making the transition from college ball.
That’s something Antonetti touched on when discussing Bazzana’s development so far.
“It’s been a great transition for Travis. He’s learned a lot about himself and what it takes to transition into the professional environment from college. It’s unfortunate that he’s had an injury and had to pause that. We’re excited to get him back on the field and for him to get back to competing for the balance of the season.”
The injury timeline essentially rules out any chance of Bazzana making his Cleveland debut this year. The Guardians had been hoping to see their future second baseman at some point in 2024, but that’s looking more like a 2026 scenario now.
Still, getting back to throwing and swinging represents real progress. Oblique injuries can be tricky – they tend to linger if you rush back too quickly. The fact that he’s building up activities suggests the Guardians are being appropriately cautious with their long-term investment.
For a team that’s developed talent as well as Cleveland has in recent years, patience with Bazzana makes sense. They’ve got time to let him fully recover and continue developing at his own pace.
