Guardians Receive Optimistic Grade for First Round Draft Pick

The Cleveland Guardians needed more offensive-minded outfielders in their farm system, and addressed that need, selecting Jace LaViolette with their first-round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft.

There are definitely some concerns with LaViolette and his swing-and-miss rate, but one MLB analyst is rather optimistic about his potential to be a big league slugger.

R.J. Anderson of CBS Sports gave the Guardians a grade of "B+" for selecting LaViolette No. 27 overall.

"LaViolette entered the spring in the running for the top selection. He then suffered through a tough year that culminated with a fractured hand in his second-to-last game. He has extreme power and discipline and equally extreme swing-and-miss tendencies," wrote Anderson.

"There's some tantalizing right-tail outcomes in play here, but there's at least an equal amount of barren left-tail possibilities. Given that it's the last pick of the first round, I don't have much issue with the swing."