Arizona native Carson Tucker released by Guardians

After becoming the second member of his family to be drafted in the first round of the MLB draft, following his brother Cole Tucker’s footsteps in 2014, Carson Tucker has recently been released by the Cleveland Guardians.

Carson Tucker was drafted by the Guardians in the first round of the 2020 draft. Both he and his brother Cole are Phoenix natives and attended Mountain Pointe High School in Ahwatukee.

Carson struggled to find his footing in the minor leagues. Playing in the California League during the 2022 season, Tucker managed only 16 hits in 117 at-bats. This performance was mirrored in 2023, where he posted a .200 batting average across 39 games.

This type of output has been consistent across the 2020 draft class. Among players selected in the first round that year, only six have seen meaningful playing time in the majors four years later. Spencer Torkelson can be argued as the best player to have come out of the 2020 draft, but the ASU native was recently sent down to Triple-A by the Detroit Tigers after recording a .201 batting average across 54 games. This was a sharp decline from Torkelson’s 2023 season, when he hit 31 home runs.

As for the Tuckers, Carson’s post-draft experience was not too different from Cole’s. While Cole did reach the majors, playing four seasons with the Pirates, 2023 with the Rockies, and now with the Angels, the 24th overall pick of the 2014 draft has struggled to meet expectations in the majors. Cole was recently optioned to Triple-A by the Angels after starting the year with a .180 batting average across 50 at-bats. His best season came in his rookie year in 2019, when he played 56 games with the Pirates.

Nevertheless, the Tuckers’ high school success and being drafted in the first round is an achievement that should not be overlooked. In an interview with Catherine Santino at People, Jackie Tucker, Cole and Carson’s father, spoke about the pride of watching his two sons’ hard work pay off: “I introduced the game to all three [sons] and they worked as much as they wanted.”

Carson, in an interview with The Ahwatukee Foothills News, noted about his dad, “He showed us how to play the game right and told us what hard work can let you do wherever your dreams take you.”

Cole and Carson became the 14th and 15th overall players to be drafted out of Mountain Pointe High School. They also became the second pair of brothers from Mountain Pointe to reach the majors, joining C.J. and Kevin Cron, who did so in 2011 and 2014 respectively.