Bryan Lavastida #21

Last name is pronounced "LAVA-stee-dah"...has been nicknamed "Lava" throughout his career...Graduated from Westland Hialeah High School (Hialeah, Fla.)...was named the MVP of the 2015 RBI World Series, playing for the Miami Marlins' RBI team...Played one season at Hillsborough Community College (Tampa, Fla.), batting .384 with three homers, 35 RBI and 30 stolen bases through 50 games...was named to the 2018 All-Suncoast Conference First team...appeared mainly at shortstop and third base, while also making a few appearances at catcher...Selected by Cleveland in the 15th round of the June 2018 Draft...upon being drafted, Cleveland converted Bryan into a full-time catcher, citing his arm slot, strength and instincts as attributes that would help him acclimate quickly to the position...The switch to full-time catching duties has impacted Bryan's life off the field in numerous...when he learned of his position change, he shaved the long hair he had donned in his collegiate days so that it wouldn't get caught in his catcher's mask.... additionally, he has a tattoo of a catcher's mask as part of a sleeve of tattoos on his right arm...Leaned heavily on the mentorship of Sandy Alomar, who's been on the Guardians coaching staff since 2010 and was a six-time All-Star behind the plate in a 20-year MLB career, spent mostly with Cleveland... ahead of his MLB debut in 2022, he also received mentorship from 10-year veteran Austin Hedges, who's regarded as one of the top defensive catchers in the Majors...Earned a spot on Cleveland's 2022 Opening Day roster after projected backup catcher Luke Maile sustained an injury late in Spring Training...Elected Minor League free agency following the 2024 season and signed a Minor League contract with the Astros on Jan. 16, 2025.

2024

Spent the entire 2024 season with Triple A Columbus and batted .232 (69-for-297) with 46 runs scored, 18 doubles, two triples, eight home runs, 42 RBI and a .722 OPS (.334 OBP/.387 SLG) in 87 games...also stole a career-high 27 bases, surpassing his previous high of 16 from the 2021 and '23 seasons...among MiLB catcher, ranked second in stolen bases, behind only Mariners prospect Harry Ford (35).

2023

Bounce back season, posting a career-high 70 RBIs in 108 games between Akron and Columbus...Finished sixth in the PD system in RBI and seventh in walks (56)...Was designated for assignment on Apr. 23 and outrighted off 40-man to Akron five days later (opened year in Akron)...Elevated to Columbus on 7/3, spending rest of the year in AAA...Reached in 15 straight games in May for Akron...Combined made 83 starts at C and 22 at DH.

2022

Opened the year on the Major League roster after the Spring Training injury to Luke Maile…Made four starts at catcher, appearing in six games behind the plate...Made his ML debut on April 10 at KC and collected his first hit on April 22 at New York-AL (Jameson Taillon)…Was with the Major League club, from opening day (4/7) until April 22 after being optioned to AAA…Caught 36.0 IP with Cleveland, was 0-for-2 throwing out runners...Was on the Triple-A roster before being placed on the 7-day IL with a right hamstring strain, 6/19-7/7, and was transferred to AA Akron at that time...Was with Akron from July 7-Sept. 19, spending the last week of the season back in Columbus...Combined in the minors in 2022 batted .209 (67/321) with 10 2B, 4 3B, 9 HR & 30 RBI in 46 games (.284/.349/.633)…Made 76 starts at catcher and seven at DH between Akron and Columbus.

2021

Made the jump from High-A to Triple-A in 2021, starting the year in High-A Lake County and spending time at Double-A and Triple-A, batting a combined .289 (83-for-287) with an .836 OPS in 84 games....Was on the Injured List at Lake County, May 13-June 2, with a left wrist injury...At the time of his promotion to AA Akron on July 30, his .303 average would have ranked third in the High-A Central...Reached base in 22 straight games, June 24-July 23...Went 3-for-5 w/a homer and 4 RBI in his Akron debut, July 31 at Erie...Batted .300 (24-for-80) in his first 23 games with Akron (.843 OPS, 2 HR, 14 RBI) before being promoted to Columbus on Sept. 1...Hit in 2 of his 7 games with Columbus before being sent back to Akron on Sept. 13 for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs....Went 6-for-12 in three games in the postseason for the Double-A Northeast champs (3 runs, 2 2B, HR, 4 RBI)...Combined on the year, he batted .327 (16-for-49) vs. LHP and .303 (27-for-89) with RISP...Following the season, worked out with the infielders in Arizona during fall instructional league...Entered 2021 season in Depth Camp in Feb. and appeared in two ML exhibition games.

2020

Did not play due to the cancelled Minor League season...Entered 2021 as the No. 29 prospect in the Cleveland farm system (MLB.com).

2019

Finished in the top five in the New York-Penn League in batting average (4th, .335), on-base percentage (3rd, .408), slugging percentage (4th, .483), OPS (2nd, .892), hits (5th, 70), doubles (2nd, 19), and runs (T5th, 39)...Was a Baseball America Short-Season All-Star and was named MiLB.com NYP Player of the Month in August (.413/.486/.554/1.040).