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Guardians of the Future

by Next Year in Cleveland

Justin Lada, of Next Year in Cleveland, the News-Herald/Morning Journal, and Prospects Live provides news, analysis and interviews of the Cleveland Guardians minor league system.

From the show's RSS feed, refreshed Apr 12, 2026. Source feed.

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Episodes

  1. Oops All Lefties

    (Cleveland) Guardians of the Future is back once again! Mike Mahoney joins Justin Lada to discuss: Parker Messick's MLB debut John Means' rehab Josh Hartle's promotion Khal Stephen's Guardians org deubt Braylon Doughty's unfortunate injury news Ralphy Velazquez's exploding development If George...

  2. It's Promotion Time

    Guardians of the Future is back! We're talking about the promotions in the Cleveland Guardians system including Travis Bazzana, Cooper Ingle, Ralphy Velazquez, Rafe Schlesinger and more. The show also dives into the Guardians trading for RHP Khal Stephen at the trade deadline for Shane Bieber. We...

  3. SPRING STANDOUTS: These Cleveland Guardians Prospects Are Standing Out in Spring Training

    We're talking all things Cleveland Guardians spring training in this episode of Guardians of the Future. Spring Breakout performance, spring training standouts, AND we're talking about the potential roster for the Columbus Clippers to start the year. Subscribe to the newsletter...

  4. Which Guardians prospects are coming to spring training & who needs a big performance?

    The Guardians of the Future podcast is back! The first episode of 2025 talks about which Cleveland Guardians prospects got invites to major league spring training, which ones didn't and why, as well as which prospects need to have a good showing in spring training. We also get into some of the...

  5. Talking Ship: Reviewing the Lake County Captains 2024 Championship Season

    On a long overdue episode of Guardians of the Future, Lake County Captains broadcasters Luke Potosky and Tyler Danburg join the show to recap the Captains 2024 season, including the first half division title, Travis Bazzana's debut, and the Captains rigging home the Midwest League Championship...

  6. Chase DeLauter On the Doorstep and a Few Double-A Pitchers Not Far Behind in Guardians System

    Big news in the Guardians farm system on August 19 as Chase DeLauter gets promoted to Triple-A Columbus after a three homer game stretch despite 33 games played in 2024. This episode of Guardians of the Future discusses DeLauter's promotion, what's next for him and the Guardians, what could have...

  7. Hillcat Futures

    Guardians of the Future is back talking to Lynchburg Hillcats broadcaster and Cleveland native Jason Prill about how Ralphy Velazquez and Jaison Chourio impressed at the MLB Futures game, how Angel Genao and Austin Peterson have taken off this year as prospect. The Hillcats pitching staff this…

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  8. Trying to Piece the Puzzle Together About the Guardians MLB Draft Plans

    Talking Cleveland Guardians draft strategy with Willie Hood.What rumors do we believe?How much money are the Guardians trying to commit to the picks 1.1, 1.36, 1.48?What are the odds at 1.1?Whats the plan at 1.1 if it's Wetherholt?And other prep and college options we like down the board. Watch…

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  9. Promotions, Roster Limits and The 1-1 Tier

    We're finally back for another Cleveland Guardians of the Future episode.In a solo episode this week, I talk about the promotions of Matt "Tugboat" Wilkinson and how he's looked at High-A so far, including my in-person observations at his stuff.I also discuss the promotions of Nate Furman and CJ...

  10. Captains Bats Intrigue, RubberDucks Pitching Showing Development

    There have been a number of bats on the Lake County Captains showing some good early season signs of development, from Nate Furman's power, Guy Lipscomb's Kwan-lite abilities, and CJ Kayfus' dominance.Doug Nikhazy, Tommy Mace and Aaron Davenport are all showing signs of progress in Double-A as...

  11. What to expect from Kyle Manzardo and in-person impressions from Lake County

    The Guardians are finally calling up Kyle Manzardo, but it comes at the expense of Steven Kwan. But, what does Kyle Manzardo bring to the Guardians? What does he do well and what should we expect from his skill set and tools? I dive into that, discuss the return of George Valera, as well as…

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  12. Hillcats bats and when is the time to promote?

    After a slow start, some Lynchburg Hillcats bats are catching fire. Ralphy Velazquez, Jaison Chourio and Angel Genao are hitting everything in sight, which has promoted some talk about promotions. But when is the right time to promote prospects up a level and what goes into that? This episode...

  13. Showtime Hillcats

    The Lynchburg Hillcats will be must see-tv when it comes to the Cleveland Guardians farm system and prospects in 2024. Hillcats broadcaster and Cleveland native, Jason Prill, joins Guardians of the Future to talk about the exciting young Hillcats roster, some exciting insights into players like...

  14. Start Your Engines!

    The Guardians of the Future podcast is back for the 2024 season! The 2024 minor league season is sort of underway. The Columbus Clippers have a few games under their belt though mother nature is holding them back some, and Akron, Lake County and Lynchburg will all get started this week. This…

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  15. From the Backfields of Goodyear

    Fresh off of a trip to Guardians spring training in Arizona and two days at the player development facility, here are my observations from the backfields of Guardians spring training and some prospects in big league camp as well. Players and storylines discussed: What has to happen for Chase...

  16. Talking MLB Draft and Cleveland Guardians -Type College Hitters and Pitchers with Willie Hood

    The 2024 D1 college baseball season starts Friday, February 16. And in case you haven't heard, the Cleveland Guardians are picking #1 overall in the 2024 MLB Draft.So we get the D1 college season talking 2024 MLB Draft with Willie Hood. We talk about the Guardians strategy at 1-1, how to view…

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  17. Where Will Dion Has Been This Winter

    It's been a busy offseason for Guardians pitching prospect Will Dion. He got married, spent some time working out with Driveline, and caught up on some of his favorite hobbies. He was nice enough to take a half hour of his time to talk to us this week about all of that, the change in his delivery...

  18. Guardians Prospect Storylines for 2024

    It's a new year, and it's a big year for the Cleveland Guardians farm system. Not only did they win the draft lottery to pick #1 in the 2024 MLB draft, but there are a number of prospects in the farm system who are down to their last option season, who are Rule 5 eligible coming in November that...

  19. Playing the Lottery

    Perhaps the biggest news of the baseball offseason for the Cleveland Guardians is winning the draft lottery for the 2024 draft, picking # 1 overall. On this episode of Guardians of the Future, Justin Lada is joined by Joe Werner (@ JoletinJoey on Twitter/X) of the self-published Prospect Digest...

  20. Cleveland Guardians 40 Man Decision Day 2023

    Justin Lada and Willie Hood react live to the Guardians 40 man roster decisions ahead of the Rule 5 protection deadline on Nov. 14, 2023, running through who will or won't be added, the Cal Quantrill news and Daniel Espino and Cade Smith being added

  21. Witness the Clip Show!

    The voice of Huntington Park and the Columbus Clippers, Matt Leinginger, joins the podcast to share what powers he does and doesn't have over the Columbus Clippers roster, working in minor league baseball and social media, why he's optimistic about Jhonkensy Noel, Angel Martinez, Kyle Manzardo,...

  22. Reviewing the RubberDucks 2023 Season

    Akron RubberDucks broadcaster Marco LaNave joins the podcast to put the bow on the 'Ducks 2023 season. Even though Akron didn't make the playoffs, there was plenty to talk about from Chase DeLauter's brief stint at the end of the season, Franco Aleman's incredible run in Double-A, and what he…

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  23. Lights Out for the Hillcats in 2023

    The Lynchburg Hillcats finished the 2023 season over .500 for the firs time since 2018, despite making the playoffs in 2022. They did it with interesting hitters between Jose Devers' surprising power at the end of the year, Guy Lipscomb's wheels, Wuilfredo Antunez's tenacity and more. Hillcats...

  24. Docking the Ship on the Captains 2023 Season

    As minor league baseball winds down for the 2023 season, the Lake County Captains season has come to a close. It was an interesting year with the biggest story being Chase DeLauter's exciting second half once he was healthy, showing why he was a first round pick. On this week's Guardians of the...

  25. Comebacks and Callups

    On this episode of the Guardians of the Future, we discuss the recent rehab games from new prospect Kyle Manzardo and if he could and will come up before the end of the year. We also talk about if George Valera should come up in September for Cleveland, what prospects could be promoted in the...

  26. Deadline Decisions and Draft Debuts

    The Cleveland Guardians had an interesting and somewhat controversial trading deadline. On this episode of Guardians of the Future, we discuss why the Guardians decided to move Aaron Civale now, why Kyle Manzardo could solve a long term need for the team, and how the Guardians got a lot of...

  27. Aftermath of the Draft

    Justin Lada and Willie Hood run through the Cleveland Guardians 2023 draft class, their thoughts on first round pick Ralphy Velazquez, high upside high school arm Alex Clemmey, interesting day two and day three players and answer your draft questions. https://nextyearincleveland.substack.com/…

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  28. Live Streaming the 1st Round of the 2023 MLB Draft

    Justin Lada, Jared Sziber and Joe Werner banter about the first round of the 2023 MLB draft leading up to the Guardians pick at 23 and then react to the pick. A long one, but plenty of fun draft and Guardians banter.

  29. Will Guardians Thread the Needle in the 2023 MLB Draft?

    Just before the 2023 MLB draft, Justin Lada and Willie Hood look at the latest mock drafts from over at Next Year in Cleveland, the big outlets and look at possibilities for the Guardians at pick 23, 534 and 62, and then deeper in the draft. A deep dive on the Guardians draft philosophies,...

  30. Half First Half, Half Draft, Full Cast

    For the first time this year, Willie Hood is back to join Justin Lada to recap the highlights and lowlights from the first half of the minor league baseball season from the Cleveland Guardians minor league system and then a whole lot of 2023 MLB Draft talk and who the Guardians could take at...

  31. Fair and Unfair Comparisons

    Former Guardians Baseball Insider intern and current Baseball Prospectus/Red Black Green Baseball writer Pat Ellington joins Justin Lada on this week's episode of Guardians of the Future to discuss Cleveland Guardians prospects in High-A Lake County. Topics/players discussed: Juan Brito and the...

  32. Duck Tales From the Road

    Akron RubberDucks broadcaster Marco LaNave joins host Justin Lada for this week's episode of the podcast. Marco gives some insight into Joey Cantillo's efforts to attack the zone and be more consistent following his 13 strikeout performance a few weeks ago, as well as looking into what has Aaron...

  33. Duck Depth

    This week on the Guardians of the Future podcast, we check in on the Double-A Akron RubberDucks. What does the pitching depth look like in Akron with Gavin Williams up to Double-A?How will Akron replace Williams' innings? What's with Angel Martinez's slow start and the lack of hitting so far by…

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  34. Checking in On the Clip Show

    It was a weird week in Columbus with rainouts and promotions and callups. Logan Allen was called up to make his debut with the Cleveland Guardians Sunday, so on this week's episode, we get into his debut and where's been first. While talking about the Clippers we also talk about Tanner Bibee's...

  35. Lowdown from Lynchburg - Hillcats Broadcaster Jason Prill Joins the Guardians of the Future Podcast

    On this week's episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, Lynchburg Hillcats broadcast Jason Prill joins Justin Lada to talk about the Hillcats mature offense and pitching staff, as well as: Jason's background growing up in Cleveland and becoming the Hillcats broadcaster Nate Furman moving...

  36. Guardians Acquire Steven Hajjar to Complete Will Benson Trade; 2023 Guardians Prospect Predictions

    The Guardians of the Future podcast is back with another epsiode before the start of the minor league season this week! Topics discussed this week: Guardians acquire LHP Steven Hajjar to complete the Will Benson trade with the Reds Tim Herrin and Hunter Gaddis make the opening day roster out of…

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  37. Disusing Short Term Roles for Guardians Prospects Bo Naylor, Tim Herrin, Joey Cantillo and more.

    On this week's episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, we give the reminder about how Bo Naylor's role was always going to play out in 2023, how Cleveland might handle the injuries to Sam Hentges and Cody Morris with regards to Tim Herrin's case in the short and long term, what role we...

  38. Chatting with New Lake County Captains Owner Alan Miller

    On this episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, I'm joined by new Lake County Captains owner Alan Miller to talk about the exciting changes coming to the Captains franchise and Classic Park this season. We talk about what got Alan into baseball, specifically minor league baseball, his...

  39. More on the Will Benson/Justin Boyd trade, Guardians minor league coaches & prospects in the WBC

    This week's episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast is a solo venture. - Breaking down the Will Benson/Justin Boyd trade with the Cincinnati Reds - Notable Cleveland Guardians minor league coaching assignments - Cleveland's non-roster prospect invitees to spring training - Guardians...

  40. Getting to Know 2022 Cleveland Guardians Draft Pick Nate Furman

    On this episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, 2022 Cleveland Guardians draft pick Nate Furman was gracious enough to join us to talk about a lot of different things. We talked about his Philadelphia Eagles playing in the Super Bowl, his time in the Cape Cod League and why teams like the...

  41. Fresh Start

    The Guardians of the Future podcast is back. You can now find my Cleveland Guardians minor league coverage over at the newsletter, Next Year in Cleveland (https://nextyearincleveland.substack.com). On the first episode of Guardians of the Future in 2023, I went over some housekeeping items about...

  42. Rule 5 40-Man Roster Deadline Day

    Justin Lada and Willie Hood speculate live about who the Cleveland Guardians will protect from the Rule 5 draft on the roster deadline day, November 15 at 6PM ET. The guys live react to news of the Carlos Vargas for Ross Carver swap with the Arizona Diamondbacks, and then the other 3 additions of...

  43. Preparing for the Cleveland Guardians 2022 Offseason

    The Guardians of the Future podcast is back. Justin Lada and Willie Hood breakdown the Cleveland Guardians 2022/2023 offseason ahead. What moves the Guardians will make to open spots on the 40 man roster A deep, deep dive on the Guardians will protect ahead of the Rule 5 draft and who they won't...

  44. Is the future now?

    On this week's episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, Justin Lada and Willie Hood discuss: Bo Naylor's callup and why now What does Naylor's arrival say about Bryan Lavastida's future? Will Brennan's hot start and his future The shape of the postseason roster And we take a look back at…

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  45. The kids are division champs

    On this week's episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, Justin Lada and Willie Hood discuss: The Guardians prospects help lead them to an improbably division title Will Brennan's call-up and future What it means for Nolan Jones and George Valera Playoff roster Players of the Year in the...

  46. Race to the finish

    On this episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, Justin Lada and Willie Hood disucss The Guardians delivery of a knockout blow to the Minnesota Twins Cody Morris' future role The future catching tandem How to fit Will Brennan on to the roster Guardians Arizona Fall League 2022 participants...

  47. Making the case

    On this week’s episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, Willie Hood joins Justin Lada to talk about: The Guardians pitching plans to cover Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac’s innings Which pitching prospect should come up to start this week Prospects in the Guardians org impacted by the new…

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  48. Eyes have Hill(cats)

    On this week's episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, IBI/GBI's first Carolina League reporter, Josiah Elmore, joins Justin Lada to discuss: Basically every player who played in Lynchburg this year Will Dion Jack Leftiwch Rodney Boone Jake Fox The bullpen Isaiah Greene Carson Tucker…

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  49. Wake me up before September ends

    On this week's episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, Justin Lada and Willie Hood discuss: An Amed Rosario extension vs. the Guardians shortstop prospect group Promotions of Doug Nikhazy, Will Dion, Angel Genao and Joe Lampe Who will join Cody Morris as a September callup Which Guardians...

  50. Who's the Captain now?

    On this 8/22/22 episode of the Guardians of the Future podcast, Will Cunningham (https://twitter.com/willocunningham) joined Justin Lada to talk about: - The Lake County Captains 2022 season thus far - Promotions of Johnathan Rodriguez, Angel Martinez and Mason Hickman - Mason Hickman taking off…

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About this show

Justin Lada, of Next Year in Cleveland, the News-Herald/Morning Journal, and Prospects Live provides news, analysis and interviews of the Cleveland Guardians minor league system.

Hosted by

Next Year in Cleveland

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Frequently asked questions

How many episodes does Guardians of the Future have?

Guardians of the Future has 185 episodes on PodParley. The most recent episode was published on August 26, 2025.

What is Guardians of the Future about?

Justin Lada, of Next Year in Cleveland, the News-Herald/Morning Journal, and Prospects Live provides news, analysis and interviews of the Cleveland Guardians minor league system.

How often does Guardians of the Future release new episodes?

Guardians of the Future publishes every two weeks, based on its 185 episodes since November 2018.

Who hosts Guardians of the Future?

Guardians of the Future is created and hosted by Next Year in Cleveland.
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