Cleveland Indians outfield prospect George Valera (wrist), who left Tuesday's Cactus League game after injuring his right wrist on a swing, will take a couple days off before potentially having an MRI exam on his wrist. It's the same wrist that he had surgery on his hamate bone, and manager Terry Francona said "it's hard to imagine that's not somehow affecting it." We should know more on the promising young 22-year-old outfielder in the coming days, but this injury could scrap any plans Valera had of winning a spot on Cleveland's Opening Day roster in 2023. Depending on the severity of the injury, he should make his major-league debut this year, though. In 2022, Valera was listed as the team's No. 2 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, and he has plenty of power to spare from the left side of the plate.

Cleveland Guardians outfielder George Valera (hand, wrist) fouled a ball off in the team's Cactus League game on Tuesday and immediately dropped his bat and grabbed his right hand/wrist in pain. Valera was then removed from the game. It didn't look good, and it's especially worrisome for the 22-year-old after he needed surgery on the same hand in the offseason for a broken hamate bone. The team should release more information on his injury on Wednesday, so make sure to check back for an update on his condition. Valera was the club's No. 2 prospect in 2022 and hit .250 with a career-high 24 homers and 82 RBI at Double-A Akron and Triple-A Columbus last year. He has plenty of power from the left side and is looking to make his big-league debut in 2023, but this injury could set him back significantly, depending on how much time he misses.

Cleveland Guardians outfield prospect George Valera (hand) is recovering from surgery on his right hand due to a broken hamate bone. The team's top position-player prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, had a similar surgery in 2018. He has been taking dry swings but is expected to be a bit behind the rest of the team's position players in spring training. Valera hit .250 with 25 doubles, 24 home runs and 84 RBI at Double-A Akron and Triple-A Columbus in 2022 while also striking out 145 times and walking 74 times. It typically takes around six to eight weeks to recover from hamate surgery, so it's likely that Valera will begin the year at Triple-A. However, he's a good bet to make his MLB debut at some point in 2023 if he can stay healthy.

The Cleveland Guardians promoted outfield prospect George Valera from Double-A Akron to Triple-A Columbus on Monday. The 21-year-old had an .837 OPS in 90 games at Akron to earn the promotion. Cleveland now has nine of the league's top-100 prospects, per MLB pipeline, in Valera, Daniel Espino, Gavin Williams, Gabriel Arias, Brayan Rocchio, Tyler Freeman, Logan Allen, Nolan Jones and Bo Naylor. Valera hit .264/.367/.470 with 15 home runs, 59 RBI, 64 runs scored and two stolen bases in 90 games at Double-A. He's the team's No. 2 prospect behind Espino right now, and he has a loose and smooth left-handed swing that regularly makes hard contact.