2026 August Farm Report: AL Central

With September around the corner, it’s time to wonder when the Guardians will pull the trigger on Ralphy Velazquez.

As we’ve noted throughout 2026, Velazquez has been a monstrous power hitter this season. However, he went on an unreal tear over the last month, with 16 home runs over his last 23 contests. That rip pushed him to 20 home runs over 69 contests with Triple-A Columbus, and 26 overall this season. He could be the long-term answer at first, even though the club had Velazquez play some games in left this season.

Velazquez wasn’t the only notable Guardians hitter to shine over the past month.

Nolan Schubart hit seven home runs for the Akron Rubberducks in a four-week span, while Ryan Cesarini hit 11 in that same time period. Schubart, despite his flaws, is a well-known slugger, dating back to his days with OK State. But the 23-year-old Cesarini is a bit more under-the-radar, as he hit 18 home runs in 59 contests this year after just five last year.

Welbyn Francisca, now 20 years of age, ripped off 11 home runs in the past month. Francisca, over his first 54 games with High-A Lake County, slashed .290/.370/.570 with 15 home runs and 27 extra-base hits.

On the other end of the spectrum, a tough month for Jaison Chourio. Chourio slashed .207/.324/.293 with Double-A Akron.

As for the pitchers, a strong month for Caden Favors. Favors struck out 33 over 28.1 IP in his last five starts with Double-A Akron. The 24-year-old left-hander didn’t have a mind-blowing Whiff%, just a tick above 28%. But Favors has limited walks, as his BB/9 is now at 3.7, down from the 4.3 rate he sported in 2025.

Royals

The Royals were aggressive with Zion Rose, the club’s first-round pick from 2026. Rose, one of the best impact speedsters available, was moved straight to High-A Quad Cities. And over his first 11 contests with the River Bandits, Rose slashed .268/.385/.366 with two extra-base hits (one home run) and eight stolen bases.

It’s obviously early. But the early returns have been good so far with Rose, someone who can move up fast and provide great value quickly thanks to his speed.

Staying in Quad Cities, it was another impressive month for David Shields. Another stretch where Shields had a high Whiff% (31% from 7/20-8/19), and 26 strikeouts over 19 innings for the River Bandits. For much of a breakout season, this has been for Kendry Chourio; Shields improved his stock immensely this year, too.

Up in Double-A, former fourth-round pick Hunter Owen had a brilliant month. The Vanderbilt product struck out a Texas League-high 41 batters over 26 innings. Owen is one of those pitchers who, one could argue, has been BABIP’d this year; opposing batters have a .352 BABIP this season. But at the same time, he’s allowed 17 home runs over 82.1 IP.

Carson Roccaforte, now in Triple-A, led the Texas League in home runs (11) over the last month.

Down in Low-A, Michael Lombardi struck out 22 more batters across 16.1 IP this month, raising his 2026 total to 121. The only problem for Lombardi this season has been the walks, with 49 over 84 innings overall.

Lastly, L.P. Langevin keeps missing bats.

Tigers

For a club looking for the next wave of pitching talent, the two arms, aside from newcomers River Ryan and Brady Smith, Detroit fans need to pay attention to are Cameron Flukey and Ben Jacobs.

Flukey, the Tigers’ top pick from 2026, has potential to be a valuable starter so long as his development doesn’t go off track. Jacobs, meanwhile, had quite the month in West Michigan. The former ASU pitcher posted a 0.86 ERA over his last four starts with the Whitecaps, struck out 26 over 21 innings, and had a 32.8% Whiff% over the last month.

Simply marvelous stuff from Jacobs, a pitcher who seems like a gift for the Tigers now, after Detroit took him in the third round last year.

Speaking of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Tigers’ two first-rounders from last year are in full-season ball. Through 74 games this season, Jordan Yost slashed .246/.367/.342 with three home runs and 18 extra-base hits for Lakeland. Michael Oliveto, who rejoined Lakeland after an IL stint last month, slashed .314/.467/.468 with four extra-base hits in August.

Both Yost & Oliveto have been relatively disciplined, compared to their peers in the Florida State League. From July 21 through August 19, Oliveto’s 20% Chase% was one of the lowest in the circuit.

Up in High-A, Beau Ankeney continued his strong season. Ankeney, over a 20-game span, belted eight home runs and 11 extra-base hits.

Moving on to other catchers in the system, Josue Briceno bullied his way to Triple-A Toledo. Now, the more pressing question is how much he can push to force the Tigers’ hand. So far with the Mud Hens, Briceno batted .167 over his first 11 games in Triple-A.

Twins

As one can tell, this is the exciting time of the year. Aside from the promotions and prospect-involved trades, this is also the time of the year when some of the MLB Draft picks from the present year get their first looks in pro action.

The Twins pushed Vahn Lackey and Carson Tinney to Low-A Fort Myers. Tinney had a well-documented track record in terms of power. And the former Texas Longhorn continues to rake in Fort Myers, in a league where it can be tough to generate lots of offense. Tinney hit six home runs over the last month, plus had the second-highest Take% in the circuit (from 7/21-8/19)/

Lackey, like Tinney, has been very patient at the plate. However, the former Georgia Tech catcher hasn’t squared up as much as his teammate to this point. Through his first 14 games, Lackey has 14 walks. However, he slashed .204/.389/.370 with a home run and five extra-base hits.

Remember, it is early.

Sticking with the Low-A theme, it was a better month for Quentin Young, who slashed .265/.338/.544 with four home runs and nine extra-base hits. There’s no question about the power. But in another month where his Whiff% hovered around 50%, Young looks more and more like an all-or-nothing hitter.

White Sox

Back in July, the White Sox selected Roch Cholowsky with the first-overall pick in the MLB Draft. Now, after all the pomp & circumstance, it’s time to see what exactly Cholowsky can do as he looks to make his ascent to the Majors.

So far, it’s been a mixed bag. Cholowsky slashed .167/.326/.333 with a home run and four extra-base hits over his first nine games with High-A. Obviously, there are elements at work here. It’s been a long year; adjustments have to be made, and so it’s not a complete shock that Cholowsky isn’t tearing it up. But the positives are very much there, as he walked seven times in those games.

Alex Lodise (8) and George Wolkow (7), also in Winston-Salem, have been among the best power hitters in the South Atlantic League this month. But just like in past months, Wolkow showed a lot of swing-and-miss, which does complicate figuring out what exactly the long-term hit tool looks like.

In fact, the Dash had three of the top-five in the SAL over the last month in strikeouts (Lodise, Wolkow, Javier Mogollon). Not included is Wes Kath, who led that circuit in the unfortunate category of Whiff%. Kath, a second-round pick from 2021, is in his fourth season with Winston-Salem.