He talked about resilience. He never wanted to give up. And due to such a mentality, he will now make his major league debut with the Cleveland Guardians. On Friday, June 12, the front office announced that right-handed pitching Prospect Daniel Espino was going to be promoted to the major league roster. After years of battling obstacles, including injuries, surgeries, setbacks and personal loss, Espino will be given a chance to show baseball what he's got. "Crying, I was crying a lot. It's been really emotional days," Espino said when asked about his reaction to such an opportunity. "I got told Wednesday afternoon, and from there, just talking to family, we're all here. So really excited, really emotional. The sense of gratitude that I have, just, I can't, I can't, I can't even describe it."#Guardians top prospect Daniel Espino on what his reaction was when he found out he was being promoted to the big leagues:"Crying, I was crying a lot. It's been really emotional days. I got told Wednesday afternoon, and from there, just talking to family, we're all here. So…— Cade Cracas (@CracasCade) June 12, 2026Across the last few seasons, the Cleveland Guardians have been incredibly patient with Espino, allowing him to slowly but surely work his way back up to speed. He missed the entire 2023 and 2024 seasons, being held out of much of the 2025 campaign as well. From 2022 through 2025, he played in just five minor league games and four fall ball outings. But when he jumped right back onto the diamond towards the end of the 2025 season, he showed that he was ready to give the team his all. He worked his way up to high velocity numbers in the offseason, pitching well in spring training before being given the nod to play in Triple-A to begin 2026. He spoke on Friday, sharing that he knew he was making strides in the right direction when he "started to throw the ball" with a laugh. This season, some of his numbers have looked shaky, but his advanced metrics tell the story that he is ready to at least get a taste of the highest level of the sport. Before leaving Triple-A, he came in at the 90th percentile or higher in Whiff%, Z-Contact%, Fastball Velocity, tjStuff+, Hard-Hit% and Swinging Strike%, all of which indicate that his stuff would translate to the next level of the game.TJ Stats, Cleveland Guardians Daniel Espino | TJ Stats, Cleveland Guardians Daniel EspinoThroughout his journey, though, sacrifices had to be made to get to this point. He had to make his way to the States, earn an opportunity to be drafted by Cleveland and then punch his ticket to the big leagues. With injuries and personal loss hitting him along the way, he had every reason to just hang up his cleats and take a different path. But he didn't. He stuck to it. “I look back and I just see a picture of me as a kid and all the sacrifices that my family has made,” Espino said about what motivated his return in an interview with the BIGPLAY Sports Network's Hanna Wilford. “And knowing that I was born with destiny, and God wouldn’t put anything in front of me that I couldn’t handle.” As Espino believed in himself and kept grinding, the organization kept it's trust in him as well. For Espino, that meant a lot. It showed that they weren't willing to give up on him, even if the road to recovery was going to be a long process. They, too, like Espino, had the resilience that coming out on the other side would be worthwhile. Espino said that him being at Progressive Field on Friday speaks for itself."It speaks for itself that I'm able to sit here and talk to you," he said. "How everybody from the front office and how they believed in me from those times. And now that I'm able to sit here and talk to you, it just speaks for itself how the patience and how not only my resilience, but also their resilience, that this day was gonna come."#Guardians top prospect Daniel Espino on what it meant to see such patience and guidance from the organization the past few years:"It speaks for itself that I'm able to sit here and talk to you. How everybody from the front office and how they believed in me from those times.…— Cade Cracas (@CracasCade) June 12, 2026It has yet to be confirmed when Espino will hit the mound for the first time, but coming out of the bullpen will give him plenty of opportunities to see action. The Guardians will be in action all weekend long to play host to the Detroit Tigers from Progressive Field. The first of a three-game set will begin at 7:20 p.m. EST on Friday, June 12. Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow