Rising Guardians prospect could end up becoming trade deadline X-factor

Last year, the Guardians added infield prospect Angel Genao to their 40-man roster to keep him out of the 40-man draft. While Genao was just 21 at the time, his addition was a tangible example of how highly the Guardians think of them. 

But could there be a chance the Guardians could take advantage of how much another team likes him? 

Although the Guardians are largely regarded as the MLB team that hoards their prospects the most, this year’s trade deadline could test that theory given the Guardians have a commanding lead in the American League Central while also having some clear areas on the roster in need of an upgrade. 

And, should the Guardians choose to upgrade, it’s hard to believe they’d do so without Genao, who is a bit redundant in the Guardians’ system. 

Angel Genao could help the Guardians make a massive trade

The idea of Genao as a trade piece was first brought up earlier this week when beat writer Tim Stebbins included him as the Guardians’ entry in MLB.com’s story highlighting each team’s top trade chip. 

His inclusion on the list makes a ton of sense given he’s a top prospect (No. 44 prospect in baseball, per MLB Pipeline) but doesn’t have a clear big league home thanks to Brayan Rocchio being entrenched at shortstop, Travis Bazzana being at second and José Ramírez being at third. 

He’s also just a step away from the big leagues, which could help entice him to a seller who is looking to compete sooner rather than later. Genao has slashed .258/.358/.432 with seven home runs and 23 RBI in 53 games across Double-A and Triple-A. 

Genao has struggled a bit since getting the call to Triple-A last month, but he’s still nearly four years younger than his competition and still has a .749 OPS. 

But Genao seems more like a luxury than a need right now. And that luxury could help the Guardians go big game fishing. 

Their biggest needs stand out as a reliever, depth arm and right-handed power bat, all of which should be available in spades. But the tier of talent they acquire in those positions would depend on what they’re willing to give up. 

They have enough solid prospects in the lower level of the minors to go out and get a low-to-middle tier option, but including Genao in a deal would help them nab a big fish like Sandy Alcantara or sweeten the pot should they get into a bidding war with another team. 

Now, all of that doesn’t mean the Guardians are going to trade Genao. Maybe they elect to hold onto him and deal someone else from the middle-infield picture.

Or maybe they teach him the outfield like they’ve done with seemingly every other position player prospect they’ve had since the dawn of time. 

But no matter what decision they make, it seems clear that Genao is starting to become a huge part of the team’s decision making process for a variety of reasons. 

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