GOODYEAR, ARIZONA – FEBRUARY 12: Cooper Ingle of the Cleveland Guardians poses for a portrait at Cleveland Guardians Photo Day during 2026 Spring Training at Goodyear Ballpark on February 12, 2026 in Goodyear, Arizona. (Photo by Russell Lee Verlinger/Cleveland Guardians/Getty Images)
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Cleveland Guardians fans should be excited about the future of Cooper Ingle.
Ingle, 24, is a catcher in the Cleveland Guardians development program.
Cooper Ingle can flat out hit.
baseballreference.com lists Ingle to be 5-9, 190 pounds, which isn’t a very large frame for a catcher.
At the close of play April 20, Ingle was hitting .357/.617/.786/.1.403, with four homers and 12 RBIs in 47 plate appearances.
The left-handed hitting Ingle is another in the vast array of left-handed hitters in the Guardians organization.
At the big league level this year, the Guardians have right-handed hitting David Fry, and Austin Hedges, as well as left-handed hitting Bo Naylor handling the catching at the major league level.
All three are veterans, with Hedges providing tremendous leadership and outstanding defensive abilities behind the plate.
Fry and Naylor have started slowly at the plate, but there is no indication any of the Guardians catchers are in immediate jeopardy of being replaced.
But strange things happen in baseball.
A bat like the one Ingle is flashing in his development becomes more intriguing with each passing game.
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA – MAY 28: Cooper Ingle #12 of the Clemson Tigers stands on the field during an official play review against the Miami Hurricanes in the ninth inning during the ACC Baseball Championship game at Durham Bulls Athletic Park on May 28, 2023 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
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About Cooper Ingle:
Ingle was selected by the Guardians with the team’s 4th pick in the 2023 Major League Baseball draft.
Chosen out of Clemson University, Ingle received a $400,000 signing bonus from Cleveland.
The Guardians may have gotten a clear bargain when they signed Ingle, as MLB had indicated a value of $526,200 for Ingle’s draft slot.
At the time of the draft, MLB.com’s Jam Callis indicated, “Ingle was a “contact hitter, athletic for his position, flashes solid speed, average arm.”
That was fair at the time. But Ingle has really improved in all phases of his game since.
The praise for Ingle’s game is fairly widespread.
On April 20, nextyearincleveland.substack said, “Ingle continues to make his case to be behind the plate for the Cleveland Guardians in the near future after a two-home run game in the series finales against Iowa.”
In October 2025, si.com predicted Ingle would make his major league debut with Cleveland this year, 2026. While that hasn’t happened quite yet, the new season is only one month old.
Clemson catcher Cooper Ingle laughs with teammates before an NCAA baseball game against South Carolina at Segra Park on Saturday, March 5, 2022, in Columbia, S.C. Clemson won 10-2. Ingle is batting .463 and has a .603 on-base percentage. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)
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About Cooper Ingle:
Ingle went to A. C. Reynolds High School in Asheville, North Carolina. He then went to Clemson, where he played three seasons, and hit 329/.425/.476/.901, with 29 doubles, 14 home runs, and 81 RBIs in 578 plate appearances.
Ingle is in his 4th season in the Guardians development program.
The Guardians got to see Ingle play in the summer Cape Cod League before the draft. He hit well enough to put himself on the map for the draft.
The Cape Cod League uses wooden bats, and at times, players have difficulty with the transition from aluminum bats in college, to using wood in the Cape Cod Summer League.
Ingle is ranked the No. 5 Guardians prospect, and is the highest ranked catcher in the Guardians development system.
Ingle’s most refined tool is his ability to hit for average, which is showing in Columbus.
Ingle is very disciplined at the plate, as his knowledge of the strike zone, his patience, and his selectivity are hallmarks of his offensive approach.
An excellent contact hitter, it’s possible that Ingle can hit some big league homers.
Not particularly young for a budding prospect, most of Ingle’s skills are known, and most are baked in.
He can hit. He can play solid defense at catcher, with good blocking and receiving skills. Ingle is reputed to be a good handler of pitchers.
MLBPipeline.com indicates Ingle may have trouble framing pitches. However, that skill has become less relevant now with the advent of the Automated Balls/Strikes (ABS) system.
The ABS system may be of great assistance to a catcher like Ingle, and in fact, it may be a factor that escalates his timetable to the parent club.
AKRON, OHIO – MAY 20, 2025: Cooper Ingle #2 of the Akron RubberDucks runs the bases after hitting a solo home run during the fifth inning against the Altoona Curve at Canal Park on May 20, 2025 in Akron, Ohio. (Photo by George Kubas/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
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Conclusions:
For this old scout, Ingle might prove to be an upgrade to the current Cleveland catching corps.
While he may not become a star, Ingle should hit enough to keep the line moving in the Cleveland batting order with solid contact, and a hit tool that could result in a very respectable major league batting average.
Prospect catcher Cooper Ingle is hitting his way to Cleveland.
Future Cleveland Guardians games could see more offense from the catching position.
Cooper Ingle can hit.
That matters.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/berniepleskoff/2026/04/22/guardians-prospect-catcher-cooper-ingle-hitting-his-way-to-cleveland/
