CLEVELAND (May 6, 2024) – Former Washington State Baseball first baseman Kyle Manzardo was called up to the big leagues by the Cleveland Guardians, the club announced Monday.
 
The Guardians begin a three-game series against the Detroit Tigers in Cleveland tonight. Manzardo is the third Coug to currently be in the big leagues, joining pitchers Ian Hamilton (Yankees) and Ryan Walker (Giants). Hamilton made his big league debut with Chicago White Sox in 2018 and Walker made his debut last May with the Giants.
 
Manzardo is rated the team's No. 2 prospect and No. 52 overall MLB prospect by MLB Pipeline. In 29 games for Triple-A Columbus, Manzardo was hitting .303 with nine home runs, 10 doubles and 20 RBI. Manzardo was named the 2022 Tampa Bay Rays Minor League Player of the Year and was selected to play in 2023 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game last season before being traded to the Guardians.
 
Manzardo, taken in the second round as the No. 63 overall pick in the 2021 Major League Baseball Draft, was the highest draft pick for the Cougars since Scott Hatteberg was selected in the first round compensation round and No. 43 overall in 1991. Pitcher Adam Conley was taken in the second round and No. 72 overall by the Florida Marlins in 2011.
 
Manzardo earned All-America first-team honors by Collegiate Baseball as a junior in 2021 after finishing the regular season fourth in the Pac-12 Conference in hitting (.365), third in slugging (.640), second in RBI (60), tied for third in doubles (19), tied for ninth in home runs (11) and fourth in total bases (126). The junior from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho became the first Coug to record 60 RBI since Jim Murphy had 61 in 2008, led WSU with 24 multiple-hit games and 17 multiple-RBI games including three 5-RBI performances. In conference play, Manzardo hit .325, led the Pac-12 with 13 doubles and tied for seventh in RBI (26).
 
Manzardo was also named to the 2021 ABCA/Rawlings All-America Third Team by the American Baseball Coaches Association and Perfect Game, the ABCA/Rawlings ABCA All-West Region First Team and the All-Pac-12 Team. Manzardo was WSU's first All-American first-team selection since pitcher Aaron Sele in 1990 and was the first position player to earn All-American first-team honors since John Olerud in 1988.
 
In his three seasons in Pullman, Manzardo was a two-time All-American (2020, 2021), hit .336 with 37 doubles, 16 home runs, 105 RBI, 149 hits, set the WSU record with a 43-game on-base streak and recorded a 27-game hitting streak, the second-longest hitting streak in program history. Manzardo also tallied 45 multiple-hit games including 11 3-hit games and four 4-hit games. Manzardo was just the second Cougar to be a two-time All-American, joining Phil Westerndorf (1975, 1977) after earning third-team honors in 2020.