Guardians Prospects: Unheralded prospect shines in AFL, Daniel Espino impresses

We’re in the thick of the Arizona Fall League, which is baseball’s premier stateside prospect showcase before the harsh chill of winter hits. 

And the Guardians team in this year’s AFL is filled with plenty of intriguing prospects, even if it lost a bit of intrigue when Chase DeLauter pulled out of playing after making his MLB debut in the postseason). 

But in a story for MLB.com, their Pipeline staff mentioned Guardians outfield prospect Wuilfredo Antunez as one of the most important players on the roster. 

MLB Pipeline highlights Wuilfredo Antunez as Guardians prospect to watch in AFL

Antunez signed with the Guardians for just $10,000 in 2019 but has quickly developed into one of the best hitters in Cleveland’s system. He slashed .275/.335/.521 with 18 home runs and  67 RBI in 101 games between High-A and Double-A in 2025. 

And while that promotion marked the first time he had played above High-A since joining the Guardians, he’s 23 and has been in Cleveland’s system for five years.

The Guardians are backed into a corner when it comes to his future on the roster. Since he’s been in Cleveland’s system for five years, he’s eligible for this year’s Rule 5 Draft if the Guardians don’t add him to their 40-man roster. 

As a reminder, the Rule 5 Draft allows clubs without a full 40-man roster to select certain non-40-man roster players from other clubs. Players selected in the Rule 5 Draft picks are assigned directly to the drafting club's 26-man roster and must be placed on outright waivers in order to be removed from the 26-man roster in the subsequent season.

So if the Guardians leave Antunez unprotected and he’s taken by an opposing team in the Rule 5 Draft, he’d have to spend all year on that team’s active roster. 

Antunez got off to a great start at the Fall League when he mashed two home runs across the first week of play, but he was shut down not long after due to a shoulder injury.

While Antunez still has some growth to make as a player, the Guardians have been searching for outfield production since the dawn of time.

The other highlight of the team’s Arizona Fall League has been the performance of starting pitcher Daniel Espino. A flame-throwing right-hander, Espino suffered a knee injury in 2022 and ended up going 1,250 days between throwing pitches before returning to the mound with Triple-A Columbus this September. 

He’s made three appearances in the AFL so far, where he’s allowed two hit with five strikeouts across three innings. He struck out the side in his appearance on Wednesday.

His fastball touched 99 miles per hour, and, perhaps most importantly, has been able to stay healthy. 

"I'm able to have my four pitches do what I want them to do. I hit 99 and it's been pretty consistent the whole year. It was never a doubt for me if I was going to get back to it. I feel like it came back pretty fast, the velo, and to me it's more important how I'm attacking the zone, how I can mix my arsenal,” he told MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis. 

The Guardians have a plethora of Major League starting pitchers, but Espino has the kind of pitching arsenal that has scouts drooling. Time will tell if the work he’s putting in at Arizona will end up helping the Guardians win at Progressive Field.