CLEVELAND (JMU Athletics) – Former James Madison outfielder Chase DeLauter has been named to the Cleveland Guardians’ 2025 American League Wild Card Series roster, the club announced Tuesday morning. Game one of the best-of-three series begins later today at 1 p.m., as third-seeded Cleveland hosts sixth-seeded Detroit.
His debut will make him the 15th player in program history to play in a Major League Baseball game. He is the first Duke to make an MLB roster since Nick Robertson was called up by the Los Angeles Dodgers during the summer of 2023 and joined Kevin Kelly, who began that season by making the Tampa Bay Rays Opening Day roster.
DeLauter was selected 16th overall in the 2022 MLB Draft by Cleveland in the first round, the highest ever draft pick in program history. He has since gone on to be the 2025 AL Central Champions’ second-ranked prospect and 54th overall in MLB. During his time in the minor leagues, he has faced numerous injuries but when healthy, he is a career .302 hitter with an .888 OPS. The left-handed swinger has played in 138 games with 504 at-bats, recording 40 doubles and 20 home runs with 87 RBIs. In addition, he has crossed home plate 88 times.
Having primarily spent time in Triple-A with the Columbus Clippers this season, he batted .264 with eight doubles and seven home runs. In addition, he added 28 runs scored and knocked in 24 runs during the 42 games he played in.
During his three-year career in Harrisonburg from 2020-22, he played in and started 66 games. He finished his career with a .402 batting average and an OPS of 1.235, as he ranks first, second and third respectively in on-base percentage (.520), batting average and slugging percentage (.715). He also ranks first in on-base percentage (.576), second in slugging percentage (.828) and third in batting average (.437) in a single season at JMU, all accomplished during the 2022 season.
The two-time All-CAA selection and 2020 Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American tallied 103 hits across 256 at-bats, connecting on four triples, 15 home runs and 27 doubles. He recorded 71 runs scored and 70 RBIs, while drawing 62 walks to 45 strikeouts. The Martinsburg, W.Va. native also went 24-for-30 in stolen base attempts.
DeLauter will join Mike Venafro as the lone Dukes to play in an MLB postseason game. Venafro made two appearances each for the Texas Rangers and the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1999 ALDS and the 2004 NLDS, respectively.
— JMU Athletics —
