The Cleveland Guardians placed outfielder Chase DeLauter on the 10-day injured list with a right side rib fracture and recalled Kahlil Watson from Triple-A Columbus, giving the club another MLB outfield option while its position-player injuries pile up.
DeLauter IL Move Is Retroactive To June 14
The MLB Stats API transactions feed lists DeLauter's injured-list placement as dated June 17 and retroactive to June 14. The official transaction description specifies a right side rib fracture.
MLB Trade Rumors reported that DeLauter suffered the injury Saturday when he crashed into the outfield wall while tracking a Gleyber Torres fly ball. The outlet also noted that Cleveland lost Jose Ramirez to a hamate fracture and Angel Martinez to a foot fracture in the same game.
DeLauter's absence removes one of the more talented bats from a Guardians lineup that was already thin. MLB Trade Rumors reported that, after hitting five homers in the season's first seven games, he had settled into a .252/.333/.346 line over the following eight weeks while continuing to show strong contact skills.
Kahlil Watson Gets Cleveland Call
Cleveland's corresponding move was to recall Watson from the Columbus Clippers. The MLB transaction feed confirms Watson moved from Columbus to the Guardians on June 17.
Watson, 23, is in line for his major league debut if he gets into a game. MLB player-search data returned during verification did not list a previous MLB debut date for the outfielder.
The path here has not been direct. MLB Trade Rumors noted that Watson was the No. 16 pick in the 2021 draft by the Miami Marlins, became a top prospect quickly, then slid after contact issues and a defensive move away from shortstop. Cleveland acquired him in the Josh Bell and Jean Segura contract swap.
Guardians Need Outfield Help Now
The current version of Watson has at least forced the issue. MLB Trade Rumors reported that he entered this call-up hitting .255/.370/.491 with 12 home runs and 15 steals in 56 games this season, after a 2025 campaign in which he hit .250/.346/.467 with 16 homers and 17 steals between Double-A and Triple-A.
The swing-and-miss concern has not disappeared. The same report said Watson struck out in 27.7 percent of his plate appearances last season and 28 percent this year, with a Triple-A contact rate below the major league average.
Cleveland can live with some rough edges in the short term because the roster need is immediate. DeLauter is out, Ramirez and Martinez were also injured in the same game, and the Guardians needed another playable outfielder. Watson now gets the first major league opening his prospect arc has been building toward.