Bazzana sidelined, but Guards’ top prospect remains laser-focused

This story was excerpted from Tim Stebbins’ Guardians Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CLEVELAND — Travis Bazzana has long been known for his great work ethic and a desire to get better every day. Unsurprisingly, that shined through after he went down with an internal right oblique strain last month.

“When you have a setback like that, it’s hard not to be disappointed because he’s going to miss some time,” Guardians president Chris Antonetti said. “But one of the things I so appreciate about Travis is he looks at every opportunity as an opportunity to grow and be better.

“Whether that’s adversity on the field or even now this injury, he’s thinking about, ‘What can I learn from this, and how can I be better moving forward because of it?’”

Bazzana (the Guardians’ No. 1 prospect and MLB’s No. 12 overall) is expected to miss 8-10 weeks due to the oblique strain, which he suffered in the second game of a doubleheader with Double-A Akron on May 14. The 21-year-old hit a double in the fourth inning but he was in clear discomfort after reaching second base and exited the game. He’s started his rehab process at the Guardians’ Arizona complex.

It was a tough setback for Bazzana (the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft), whom Antonetti lauded for having a great offseason heading into his first full season of professional ball. The timing of it was also unfortunate, considering what Bazzana was doing offensively with Akron.

In 21 games in April, Bazzana slashed .238/.347/.393 with one double, three triples, two homers, 12 walks and 27 strikeouts. Through 12 games in May, he slashed .279/.392/.512 with four doubles, two homers, seven walks and 12 strikeouts.

“He went through a period there where he was just not himself offensively,” Antonetti said. “There were things he was struggling with with his swing, and it carried over to his mindset. He worked — like he always does — exceptionally hard to turn that around. We were seeing the benefits of that in the weeks prior to the injury.

“He shared that’s part of what made it frustrating, because he felt he was finally hitting his stride and where he wanted to be offensively and getting locked in, and then the injury provided a setback. He’s committed to coming out the other side, knowing what he needs to do to be a successful hitter, and carrying that forward from the progress he made earlier in the season.”

Bazzana is known for having good pitch recognition and the ability to drive the ball across the field. Antonetti noted Bazzana felt his swing decisions were not good early on, and his timing was off as a result. The surface numbers are evidence he was finding his feel at the plate. His strikeout rate also improved from 27.6 percent in April to 23.5 in May.

Based on his expected timeline, Bazzana could return at some point in July or in August. While the lost time isn’t ideal, he still could have at least two full months of at-bats, and there’s always the opportunity for more in the Arizona Fall League. It’s too early to think that far ahead.

Right now, the priority is Bazzana getting healthy so he can get back on the field. He sounds primed to attack his rehab.

Added Antonetti: “He shows up every single day thinking, ‘How can I make the most of what’s in front of me today?’ When that’s conditioning, preparing for a game, he had that mindset. He’s carried that mindset over to his rehab, thinking about, ‘What do I need to do today to make the most out of today?’”