Cleveland Baseball Insider's 2023 End Of Season Top 50 Prospects: No. 44 Catcher Victor Izturis

As we close out the 2023 season and players prepare for a new year and spring training to begin, there’s no better time to bring you an up-to-date look at Cleveland Baseball Insiders' top 50 prospects heading into the off-season.

Rankings are based on seeing the players live, watching videos, and having conversations with evaluators within and outside of the organization, as well as other writers. 

While prospect lists are fun and entertaining for fans, they are not an end-all-be-all in terms of who makes it eventually to the major leagues. Remember, Jose Ramirez was never a top-100 prospect nationally and players like Steven Kwan and Will Brennan weren't considered top-20 prospects in the Guardians organization by many outside publications.

The ultimate goal here is to inform our readers and give you information on some of the young talent in the organization that they can follow and look forward to seeing in the future at the MLB level.

Victor Izturis - Catcher

The now 18-year-old catching prospect Victor Izturis received the second-highest bonus in the Guardians 2022 international class, signing for $1.15MM out of Barquisimeto, Venezuela. Only outfield prospect Jaison Chourio received more at 1.2MM in that same signing class.

Izturis made his professional debut in 2022 playing in 37 games in the Dominican Summer League where he hit .252 with a .389 OBP and 105 wRC+ covering 150 plate appearances.

Scouting Grades

Victor already has a very high baseball IQ for an 18-year-old just two years into his pro career thanks in large that he is the nephew of former MLB players Cesar and Maicer Izturis and trained at their Baseball Academy they run together in Venezuela. 

Izturis has great instincts and terrific pitch recognition at the plate with the ability to draw a walk. He utilizes the whole field and likes to shoot the ball the other way if given the opportunity. His ability to handle the bat and reach any ball in the zone should lead to hitting for a higher average.

He may develop more power in the future as he matures but so far it hasn't shown up in his game. The lack of pop at the plate is really the only negative to a strong profile as a hitter moving forward.

Behind the plate on defense, he offers an average to above-average arm with soft hands. Izturis may add more arm strength as he continues to mature and fill out more. He shows athleticism as a catcher behind the plate but is just an average to below-average runner overall.