Guardians make big C.J. Kayfus promotion decision with top prospect

C.J. Kayfus is coming to the show.

The Cleveland Guardians are promoting the star minor league slugger to the majors for the first time, according to The Athletic's Zack Meisel.

Pretty much all Kayfus has done in his professional career is rake.

The Guardians took the first baseman/corner outfielder out of Miami in the third round in 2023.

In his first full pro season, he split time between High-A and Double-A and batted .291 with a .511 slugging percentage.

This season, he was moved up to Triple-A in late April. He's batting .283 with a .526 slugging. That includes 13 homers, 14 doubles and four triples.

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Baseball America and MLB Pipeline's updated top-100 prospect lists both have Kayfus on them.

He's not a huge guy, just 6-feet and 192 pounds in his listing, but he can certainly swing it.

The Guardians' decision to call Kayfus up now doesn't have a clear reason. It'll be wait-and-see to note where Stephen Vogt puts him in the field.

He clearly won't play left field, where Steven Kwan is a star.

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Right field could be open, because none of Nolan Jones, Daniel Schneeman or Jonathan Rodriguez have done much of anything.

Kayfus could also be in line to take over for the veteran Carlos Santana at first base. Santana has batted just .195 since June 1.

In the long term, Kayfus may wind up in right field with Kyle Manzardo at first base, unless the Guardians believe Manzardo can only be a DH.

For now, though, it's just an exciting day. Kayfus has put up big numbers in the minors and generated plenty of hype. And now he's up with the big club for his MLB debut.

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