Now might be the right moment for the Cleveland Guardians to give Kody Huff a look in the majors.
Cleveland has already pushed nine players to their MLB debuts in 2026, which is the second-most in club history before the All-Star Break. That group has included some of the organization’s most anticipated names, with Travis Bazzana, Daniel Espino, Kahlil Watson and Franco Aleman among the players to get their first taste of the big leagues.
But the Guardians still have other prospects who could be in line for a shot later this season, and Huff belongs on that list.
The Guardians brought Huff over from the Colorado Rockies in the fall of 2023 in the Cal Quantrill trade. A 7th-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, he entered Cleveland’s system as a catcher.
That’s still his primary position, but Huff has broadened his game over the last few years. He’s no longer just a backstop, having logged 22 games at first base and 10 at third base.
The glove helps, but the bat is what makes his case compelling right now.
Huff is in the middle of a breakout year at the plate in 2026. After posting an average OPS below .700 in each of his previous two seasons at Double-A and Triple-A, he made offseason adjustments that Chris Antonetti said earlier this season were intentional, and the results have shown up.
Huff is hitting .272/.384/.498 with 14 doubles and 11 home runs. That production has translated to a 131 wRC+, and he’s paired it with strong strike-zone control, walking at a 14.5 percent clip while striking out 19.7 percent of the time.
He also bats right-handed, which would add some balance to Cleveland’s lineup.
There’s a familiar path here, too. Huff’s rise looks a lot like the routes taken by David Fry and Daniel Schneemann, two current Guardians big leaguers whose defensive flexibility helped get them to Cleveland and who have since delivered key hits for the club.
The Guardians will eventually have to make a call on Huff. He becomes Rule 5-eligible this winter, and his mix of versatility and offensive upside is exactly the kind of profile another team could be tempted to grab.
For all those reasons, Huff looks like a player who deserves a chance sometime during the 2026 season.
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Mickey Moniak and Garrett Mitchell each offer something different, which is part of what makes the situation worth watching. Moniak brings the appeal of a bat that has flashed big slugging production and a contract situation that would make him more of a short-term add, while Mitchell would be a tougher pull from a contending Brewers club but comes with years of control attached. With the AL Central and Wild Card races both tightening, Clevelands deadline plan may come down to how aggressively it wants to push for help now versus protecting what comes next. [Read more 🡒]