Where Will The Innings Come From For Guardians’ Rotation?

With spring training underway and exhibition games starting this Saturday, we have spent a lot of time discussing the Cleveland Guardians.

Today, we look at the pitching staff, primarily the starting rotation. The bullpen was outstanding last season and remember that might be the most volatile spot of any team, but Cleveland seems to have built up some depth if the primary late inning relievers (Emmanuel Clase, Hunter Gaddis, and Cade Smith) take a step back.

And one of them probably will.

That’s where names like Andrew Walters, Erik Sabrowski, who we saw at the end of the season in ’24, and veterans Paul Sewald and newly signed Jakob Junis figure in.

The question is where will the innings come at the beginning of games? Do the Guardians have enough depth among the starters?

Tanner Bibee is the clear ace right now. He’s made 56 starts over the past two seasons and threw 173 regular season innings in 2024. But he’s the only hurler with anything close to a track record.

Luis Ortiz was acquired from the Pirates this winter, and he should have a spot in the rotation. However, his high in innings pitched was last season and he still only reached 135 frames. He had a 3.22 ERA in his 15 starts in ’24, but has still started only 34 big league games.

Gavin Williams in the wild card. Almost everyone agrees he should be a top of the rotation starter, but last year missed the beginning of the year with an elbow issue and finished with a 4.86 ERA in his 16 starts. Overall, he’s made only just 32 big league starts and has fanned 160 in 158 innings.

But what Williams will Steven Vogt get this year? A microcosm of Williams’ season was at the beginning of September. On September 2nd, he threw seven one-hit innings against the Royals. His next start? Couldn’t get out of the first inning against the Dodgers.

Ben Lively made 29 starts last year with a 3.81 ERA, pitching 151 innings. That total almost doubles the next most innings he pitched in the big leagues. Other pitchers have figured it out later in their career, would we bet on Lively being one of those guys? Not sure we can say that.

The questions continue for the rest of the candidates.

Can Triston McKenzie find the strike zone? He walked 49 hitters in 75 innings last season, after pitching just 16 innings the year before. His control was worse at AAA, where he issued 33 free passes in 53 frames. Tough to count on him to make 25-30 starts.

Logan Allen was solid as a rookie (3.81 ERA), but last year allowed 113 hits and 41 bases on balls in 117 innings, compiling a 5.73 ERA. Which Allen pitches this season?

Slade Cecconi came over from Arizona in the Josh Naylor deal, and we have read a lot about how good his stuff is. So far, it hasn’t translated to success because he had a 6.66 ERA in 77 innings a year ago.

Then you have the rookies. Joey Cantillo has less than 40 big league innings and had problems with control (15 walks) and giving up home runs (6). He has a good arm but is far from being someone to count on.

Another lefty, Doug Nikhazy is a long shot to break camp with the team but could be an option later in the season.

Yes, reinforcements will come in the middle of the season with Shane Bieber due back from elbow surgery and it appears John Means will be inked to a deal soon, and he is in the same boat as Bieber.

Both are solid pitchers if healthy, especially Bieber, who of course has won a Cy Young Award.

But what happens until they are ready? There are several veterans who can soak up innings still out there on the market and we bet they could be had on one-year deals.

Perhaps Vogt and the brass are going to lean heavily on the bullpen until the reinforcements are ready. Don’t know if that strategy will work again.

Looking At Guardians’ Pitching, Especially The Rotation

That the Cleveland Guardians finished third in the American League in ERA this season was impressive considering the state of their starting rotation for much of the year.

At the start of the year, the rotation consisted of Shane Bieber, Logan Allen, Tanner Bibee, Carlos Carrasco, and Triston McKenzie. And Carrasco was in there because Gavin Williams was out with a sore elbow.

Because of injury and/or ineffectiveness, only Bibee was still there by the beginning of July, although Williams was coming back soon.

In the playoffs, Cleveland had games started by two pitchers who hadn’t thrown a pitch in the major leagues at the time of the July 31st trading deadline in Matthew Boyd and Alex Cobb.

The strength of the pitching staff was the bullpen, led by what TBS’ Brian Anderson was calling the “Fearsome Foursome” during the playoffs: Tim Herrin, Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis, and closer Emmanuel Clase.

Unfortunately, as we look ahead to 2025, the bullpen is usually the most volatile part of any baseball team. There is certainly no guarantee the relief corps will be as good as they were this season, particularly with the workload put on them.

All four of the pitchers mentioned were in the top ten in the AL in appearances.

It goes without saying that Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff need to improve the starting rotation going into next season.

We understand that Allen and McKenzie could rebound from very tough ’24 campaigns, but the organization needs to rebuild the depth they had for many seasons.

Bibee and Williams will be starters going into spring training. And they are probably the only sure things, and for a contending team, that’s simply not good enough.

Bieber is a free agent and will likely be out until June or July after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Will he sign a backloaded two-year deal with Cleveland like many pitchers in his situation do, or will he cast his lot with another team?

Boyd and Cobb are also free agents. Boyd could go for perhaps a big pay day this winter, and Cobb would be a back of the rotation arm if he comes back.

So, what can the front office do?

The closest minor league arm to the bigs is 25-year-old lefty Doug Nikhazy, who went 7-4 with a 2.98 ERA between Akron and Columbus, striking out a batter per inning.

We’ve also thought about moving Gaddis back to the rotation. Remember, he went to camp this past spring as a starter and was a starter in the minors before compiling a 1.59 ERA in ’24.

Why Gaddis? First, he’s 6’6″ and 260 pounds. But more importantly, he has a three-pitch mix, a very good fastball, slider and changeup. He wouldn’t be the first pitcher to do well out of the bullpen and become a solid starter either.

The only other alternative would be a trade. There have been several Josh Naylor rumors out there, and although the Guardians’ offense needs to improve, we could see moving him if the return is a proven starter.

Remember, the Guards do have Kyle Manzardo, who should be ready to play every day, so it would be a good, old fashioned baseball trade, not a salary dump.

We aren’t writing off pitchers like Allen and McKenzie, but the Guardians can’t really depend on them either. A team that has made it to the post-season two of the last three years and wants to get back in 2025, can’t afford a lot of questions in their rotation.

Guardians Still In This Series, But Need A Win Tonight

Former Browns’ coach Marty Schottenheimer used to say no game was “must win” unless if you lose you are eliminated from playoff consideration. On that basis, today’s game three of the American League Championship Series isn’t that, but it’s pretty darn close.

The Guardians are down two games to none in the series, but it’s a best-of-seven series, so they aren’t dead yet, but you can get out the shovels if they can’t win tonight at home.

The big weaknesses that plagued the regular season, starting pitching and the offensive are again the culprits in dropping the first two games of the series.

In the post-season, the Guardians are 3-0 when they scored four runs or more and 0-4 when they tally three runs or less. They’ve put up just five runs in the first two games of the ALCS.

As for the starters, we knew Steven Vogt would rely heavily on the bullpen throughout the playoffs, but in game one, Alex Cobb pitched just 2.2 innings and Tanner Bibee went just 1.1 in the second game. That has caused the skipper to use guys in higher leverage situations than he wanted too.

That has caused some hiccups. Rookie Joey Cantillo came in game one and threw four wild pitches. For those questioning Vogt for going to Cantillo that early (and we were one of those people) understand he likely would have had to bring Cantillo in at some point. He used his best four relievers to the max in the last two games of the Tigers’ series, and no doubt they needed an extra day off.

And in game two, the bullpen was forced to cover 6.2 frames, and it could’ve been 7.2 if the Guards had taken the lead. He correctly used Cade Smith with the bases loaded trailing by two in the second to get out of the jam, which he did allowing just one more run to score.

The point is if either starter could get through four innings, it’s a much better situation for the bullpen. It’s that simple.

As for the offense, Cleveland has just three players with more than one hit in the two games: Brayan Rocchio, who continues to have a tremendous playoff, Steven Kwan, and Josh Naylor. New York has five.

The Yankees have seven extra base hits, the Guardians have just two, the home runs by Rocchio and Jose Ramirez. Cleveland hitters have struck out 21 times, New York hitters just 16.

The Guardians have problems in right field, where Jhonkensy Noel and Will Brennan have combined to go 2 for 25 with one walk in the seven games. And at catcher, Bo Naylor and Austin Hedges have combined to go 0 for 23.

We know Bo Naylor is struggling but pinch hitting for him early in a game just means more at bats for Hedges, who is on the roster for defense and leadership, but is a terrible hitter.

It’s not that the offense hasn’t had opportunities, they were 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on in game two. Someone, anyone, needs to come through with a big hit.

Let’s be clear. Right now, this series is not over. A win in game three put the Guardians right back in it. There is pressure on Matthew Boyd to provide some innings and with four days off, no doubt, Emmanuel Clase is prepared to get Vogt at least five outs.

The Guards need a spark offensively. Kwan and Rocchio have gotten on base. They need someone to step up and drive them in.

Guardians Survive And Advance

It had been since 1997 that the Cleveland baseball team won an elimination game when they beat the Florida Marlins in Game 6 of the World Series.

But they won two this week. Trailing the Detroit Tigers, two game to one Thursday night, they won 5-4 to force a deciding game five, and then won at home yesterday, 7-3 to advance to the League Championship Series for a sixth time, the third time against the New York Yankees.

They have lost the previous two matchups against the Bronx Bombers, but defeated Seattle in 1995, Baltimore in 1997, and Toronto in 2016.

So many heroes in this series, primarily their big acquisition at the trade deadline, Lane Thomas, who went 6 for 19 in the series, driving in nine runs. His three-run shot in Game 1 got the Guards off on the right foot, and the grand slam in the deciding game was ultimately the deciding blow.

Steven Kwan went back to first half Kwan, going 11 for 21 with two walks. He had a trio of three hit games in the series.

David Fry sent the series back home in game four, with a go ahead two run homer and a squeeze bunt to score an important insurance run.

And of course, as it has been all season long, the bullpen was unbelievable. We said before the series it was likely Cleveland only needed four innings from the starters, and out of 132 outs recorded by the pitching staff, 60 of them came from Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis, Tim Herrin, and of course, Emmanuel Clase.

But there were unsung heroes as well.

Brayan Rocchio had a tremendous series, going 6 for 16, and was sparking with the glove. So much for those wanting others to handle the position in the playoffs.

Andres Gimenez was having a terrible series but started the five-run rally yesterday with a single and then scored an insurance run in the ninth inning.

And what about Eli Morgan. Because Steven Vogt went to the bullpen after two innings, he was running out of relievers. Gaddis was gassed after throwing 32 pitches Thursday and 30 more in the fifth game, so Morgan, who didn’t pitch in high leverage situations often, came in the 7th and got two big strikeouts.

The other three teams in the championship series are Major League Baseball’s dream, coming from the mega-markets of New York and Los Angeles. And then there are the Guardians, whose payroll is less than half of each of the other three franchises in baseball’s final four.

The Yankees are the American League’s highest scoring team at 5.03 runs per contest, over a half a run over the Guardians’ 4.4 figure. Pitching wise, New York is fourth, behind Seattle, Detroit, and Cleveland.

The key for Cleveland pitching will be to handle the dynamic duo of Juan Soto and Aaron Judge. If you can control them, you have a fighting chance. It’s a bit complicated because Giancarlo Stanton got hot in the Division Series, going 6 for 16 with a big home run.

And can the Guardians defeat Gerrit Cole, who looks like he is back to his Cy Young form in the KC series.

But remember, the Yanks won only two more regular season games than the Guardians, and although we are sure at least in the beginning of the series he will limit the usage of his four main relievers to just one inning, that of course means, the starters still only have to give the skipper about 15 outs.

As usual, where will the runs come for the Guards? Can Kwan, Thomas, and Rocchio continue their hot hitting? Can the Naylors provide some pop? And what to do with rightfield?

In a seven-game series, there is a little less pressure in game one. All the Guardians have to do is win four out of seven. If they do, a seventh American League pennant will be flying over Progressive Field.

A 1-0 Lead And More Thoughts On The Guardians/Tigers Series

We were concerned about the Cleveland Guardians’ offense coming into the American League Division Series against the Detroit Tigers, but they showed us at least in the first inning yesterday.

The first five Guards reached base and all scored as a result of an error, Josh Naylor’s single and Lane Thomas’ three run homer. A 5-0 lead in the first? How sweet was that.

We felt going into the series that Steven Vogt might only need four innings out of his starters, and indeed, Tanner Bibee gave him 4-2/3 frames before giving up a single to Parker Meadows with two out, and the skipper went to the bullpen.

And at least in game one, the relievers were as dominant as they were in the regular season, covering 4.1 innings without allowing a hit.

Cade Smith looked like he did in his big-league debut, striking out all four hitters he faced and Tim Herrin, Hunter Gaddis, and of course, Emmanuel Clase each threw an inning to give the Guardians a 1-0 lead in the series.

Another thought we had about this series is it reminds us of when the Indians took on Boston in the late 90’s, and the Red Sox’ pitching staff was led by Pedro Martinez. Martinez would pitch twice in the series, and you had the feeling Cleveland had to win any game the Hall of Famer would pitch.

Of course, we are referring to the likely Cy Young Award winner this year in the AL, Tarik Skubal. The left-hander will pitch in game two and game five if the series goes on that long.

Skubal isn’t quite Martinez, but he did go 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and 228 strikeouts in 192 frames. He hasn’t allowed more than a run in a start since September 6th against Oakland when he allowed two runs on nine hits in 5.2 innings.

Cleveland hitters will have their work carved out for them tomorrow at Progressive Field, particularly if the sun is shining and the late afternoon shadows will descend on the diamond.

The announcement of the roster for this series also caused some eyebrow raising. Although it wasn’t a surprise Nick Sandlin was left off the roster because of his propensity to give up home runs, and Ben Lively didn’t make it because the Guards only need three starters, it is a bit of shock that Alex Cobb will start game three.

Cobb hasn’t pitched in a game since September 1st due to fingernail and blister issues, and if Cleveland loses game two, you are giving him the ball in a pivotal game. Again, we know the Guardians only need three or four innings from a starter, and they will have Gavin Williams and/or Joey Cantillo to back him up, but it’s a bit head scratching.

We have always thought the even numbered games in a short series were most important until you get to the last contest, and tomorrow’s game is no different. If the Guardians can beat Skubal, they have command of the series. We aren’t saying it is won because we remember what happened in 2017.

The pressure will be on starter Matthew Boyd, a former Tiger, to keep the Detroit offense in check and either give the Guardians’ bats a chance to scrape out a run or two or get Skubal out of the game early by making him throw a lot of pitches.

With the off day again on Tuesday, no doubt Vogt will go to his bullpen early again.

All yesterday’s win means is the Guardians will not get swept and there will be two games in Detroit. We would be surprised if the Cleveland bats had another outburst like in game one.

Guardians And Their Incredible Bullpen Head To October

As the Beatles once said, it was a “Long and Winding Road” for the Cleveland Guardians in 2024. They rolled to a 38-19 start through the end of May, and looked to be on a path to 100+ victories.

But starting in June, the offense sputtered and over the next three months, Steven Vogt’s squad went 39-40 in the three summer months, through August. And then when the Kansas City Royals were breathing down their backs, they turned it on going 13-7 to date in September.

In the past few years, the American League Central Division was baseball’s poor stepchild, the weakest division in the sport. However, this season, it looks like three teams will make the post-season party, and in the next few days, the Guards will clinch a bye right to the best-of-five Division Series, where they will have home field advantage.

The offense is too dependent on Jose Ramirez, Josh Naylor, and prior to the All-Star break, Steven Kwan, although if Kyle Manzardo can maintain what he is doing through the playoffs, it would go a long way.

But the Guardians have depended on their bullpen all year long, led by the sports’ best closer in Emmanuel Clase, a Cy Young Award candidate. He likely will not win, but he probably will finish second.

When Cleveland won the division title in 2022, Clase was incredible, going 3-4 with 42 saves and a 1.36 ERA, allowing just 43 hits in 72.2 innings.

He’s been better this year, saving 46 games with a 0.63 ERA, allowing just 37 hits in 71.1 innings.

And he’s backed by a pair of relievers having equally dominant years in rookie Cade Smith (1.96 ERA, 100 strikeouts in 73.1 IP) and Hunter Gaddis (1.53 ERA, 39 hits allowed in 70.2 IP).

Fox analyst John Smoltz said a few months ago that when you play the Guardians, you are essentially playing a five inning game. That’s how good those relievers have been.

What’s even more incredible is that in the past few weeks, we’ve seen even more dominance, as Tim Herrin (1.90 ERA, 63 Ks in 61.1 IP) and now recently called up Andrew Walters, drafted just last year, who has provided five appearances and has yet to allow a hit.

Just this week, the Guardians have also had great outings from Eli Morgan in the extra inning win over Minnesota, and Erik Sabrowski, called up at the end of August and saved Friday’s win over St. Louis with 2.1 scoreless innings.

Could Vogt need just four innings from a starting pitcher in the playoffs? That will be interesting to watch. Remember, Joe Torre and Terry Francona revolutionized relief pitching usage in the post-season by asking their primary relievers to get one more out, go 1.1 IP instead of just three outs.

The emergence of Herrin and Walters could really shorten the game for Cleveland.

We feared all season the lack of innings provided by the starting rotation this season would take a toll on the relief corps by August and September. So far, the bullpen might be even better down the stretch because of Herrin, the additions of Walters and Sabrowski, and the way Morgan has pitched.

He had problems with the gopher ball before this season, allowing 19 dingers over the past two season, but this year, he’s taken care of that issue to date, giving up just two long balls.

This is a contrast from Nick Sandlin, who has allowed 12 homers this year and 24 over the past two campaigns. Could he lose his spot on the playoff roster because of it?

Congratulations to the Central Division champs! Since the wild card era started in 1995, they’ve won 12 division titles, an incredible run.

One of these years, they are going to cash in with a World Series win. Could the bullpen make that year this year?

Guards Are Winning. Doesn’t Mean There Aren’t Worries.

The Cleveland Guardians have one of the best records in baseball. It depends on the day, but there are times they are the game’s winningest team, but they are in the conversation with the New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, and Los Angeles Dodgers.

On the other hand, they are just two games ahead of Minnesota and four ahead of Kansas City in the AL Central, and the schedule is a gauntlet through the end of the year. On this trip alone they play the NL Central leaders in Milwaukee and the Yanks.

Right after Labor Day, they make their last extended road trip of the season, with visits to Kansas City and Los Angeles to take on the Dodgers.

The point is, even with all the success they have achieved this season, there is some worry as to what happens over the next six weeks.

We have been concerned about the starting pitching all season long, and although Matthew Boyd and Alex Cobb both pitched well in their last start, it’s still a worry, mostly because they simply don’t pitch enough innings.

Neither of the veterans was able to finish six innings, which isn’t a rarity for the rotation. The last time a Guardians’ starter went six innings was Gavin Williams last Saturday against the Twins, the game that broke the seven-game losing streak.

Since the All-Star break, a period of 27 games (1/6th of a season), Cleveland pitchers have completed six innings just three times. The last game a Guards’ starter went seven? The last game we could find was May 10th, when Carlos Carrasco went that long vs. the White Sox.

We know starters aren’t expected to go nine innings anymore, but pitching six shouldn’t be an anomaly. Yes, the pitching staff ranks 2nd in the AL in ERA, but the reason for that is the bullpen, and right now, Steven Vogt is down to three guys are haven’t started to leak oil–Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis, and of course, Emmanuel Clase.

Even getting six innings consistently out of a starter is a dream right now.

The other reason for concern is the offense. While pitching wins in the playoffs, you have to score runs in the regular season, and of the teams competing for the league’s best record and in the Central Division, the Guards have scored the least amount of runs.

Right now, the Guardians have the opposite of a top to bottom lineup. Among players with over 150 plate appearances, they have four hitters with above average OPS: Jose Ramirez, Josh Naylor, Steven Kwan, and David Fry.

Two of those hitters, Kwan and Fry, have been slumping since the Midsummer Classic.

Kwan had a .352 batting average and 920 OPS in the first half and had us dreaming of the first Cleveland batting champ since Bobby Avila in 1954. So far in the second half, he’s hitting .224 (.291 on base vs. .407 prior) and 646 OPS.

He seems to be hitting a lot of fly balls now, which could mean he is selling out for power? But a return to the hitter we saw before the All-Star game could be dynamic for the Guards’ offense.

Fry made the American League squad on the basis of an incredible April and May, in which he hit .352 with 8 HR and 27 RBI. Since June 1st, he’s batted .216 with 4 dingers and 15 ribbies. He still is killing lefties, with .301 average and 1047 OPS against southpaws.

He has a 666 OPS vs. RHP but continues to bat 5th when he plays.

The problem for Vogt and the organization is they don’t seem to have a lot of alternatives.

Jhonkensy Noel has provided pop, this week hitting three homers, but in the last three games, he’s 0 for 8 with six whiffs. Lane Thomas has been ineffective since coming over from Washington going 6 for 50 with 21 strikeouts.

Daniel Schneemann in the last 28 days: .156 BA and 220/200/420 splits. Will Brennan has hit since coming back from AAA, but he is what he is, basically a singles hitter that doesn’t walk (301 OBP, 391 slugging).

Can the offense find help? Can they score enough down the stretch, or will it continue to be a huge load on the bullpen?

One of the best records in baseball? Yes. That doesn’t mean there aren’t concerns.

Anatomy Of Bullpen Usage For The Guardians

When the Cleveland Guardians recent five-game winning streak ended on August 3rd with a 7-4 loss to the Orioles, there were quite a few comments on social media (yes, we know) saying Steven Vogt and his staff didn’t really try to win that game.

That’s because when rookie Joey Cantillo left the game after four innings, trailing 3-2, Vogt went with Pedro Avila to pitch 1.2 innings, and Nick Sandlin for a third of an inning to get the Guardians through six innings.

Still losing at that point, Xzavion Curry came on and after a scoreless seventh, he gave up four runs in the eighth and the game was out of reach.

The social media managers couldn’t fathom why Vogt didn’t use one of his better relievers to keep the score at a one-run deficit.

First of all, we are sure when Vogt went to Curry for the 7th, he wanted him to keep the game right there at 3-2. We are doubly sure Curry did not want to give up runs either because his spot on the roster was tenuous at best.

He’s since been DFA’d and picked up by the Miami Marlins.

But to get to the 7th inning on August 3rd, we need to go back to the previous Sunday, when Vogt used his best relievers to score a series win in Philadelphia, a game which coincidentally, Cantillo also started. It was his first big league start.

Cantillo went 3.1 innings and with Kyle Schwarber, who had already hit two bombs off the rookie, coming up, Vogt went to Cade Smith, who struck him out.

That began a busy week for the bullpen. In the subsequent game, Tanner Bibee went six, and with a 7-0 lead, the skipper used Pedro Avila for 1.1, Scott Barlow for 2/3, and Hunter Gaddis to finish it off.

The only eyebrow raiser there was using Gaddis with a then 8-2 lead.

The following day, Gavin Williams shut out Detroit for five, but used 90 pitches in doing so, meaning the ‘pen had to cover four innings. Tim Herrin, Sandlin, Cade Smith, and Emmanuel Clase finished off the game, which until Cleveland scored in the 8th and 9th, was a 2-0 affair.

Following a day off, Cleveland beat Baltimore 10-3, but it was a 5-2 contest heading into the bottom of the 7th. Ben Lively gave the team six frames, so Vogt used Smith, Herrin, and Sandlin to finish.

The next night, Cleveland won 8-4, but it was 2-1 heading into the 5th, and the manager, clearly not totally confident in Carlos Carrasco, pulled him after 4.1, so again Smith was used for 1.2 IP, followed by Barlow (.1), Avila (.2), Gaddis and Clase (each an inning).

That game was on a Friday night, meaning in a six-game span, Smith pitched four times totaling 4.1 innings, while Barlow, Sandlin, Gaddis, Herrin, and Clase were all used three times.

The Guardians’ starters have had trouble eating innings all season long, and if the team is going to get where it wants to go this season, it is incumbent on Vogt and Carl Willis to take care of the relief corps, the strength of the team.

That means, sometimes, when the Guards are trailing the manager has to have “live to see another day” attitude. That means pitching Avila, Eli Morgan, and perhaps Peter Strzelecki in higher leverage situations.

It’s also those pitchers’ opportunity to earn the skipper’s trust. Smith began the year pitching in lower leverage situations, for example.

It does not mean the manager isn’t trying to win, but these guys aren’t Strat-O-Matic cards, you can’t run them out there every day. There will be a time to do just that. It’s called the playoffs.

Hopefully, all of these relievers will still have something in the tank when October comes around.

Guardians Struggles Are On Both Pitching And Offense

The Cleveland Guardians are in a mid-season malaise. Since June 25th, a period of 40 games, Steven Vogt’s crew has gone 17-23. And note that many games is a quarter of the season, so not really a small sample size.

Most teams go through a stretch like this during a season, so it is not a sign that Cleveland isn’t a good team, after all they still have the third best record in the American League, just a game behind the Orioles.

But the Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals have gotten hot, trimming what was a nine game lead on that date (June 25th) to 2-1/2 games. Based on the recent past, it would have been crazy to think the Central Division would have three of the five best records in the AL, but here we are.

The Guards put together a five-game winning streak a little over a week ago, beating Philadelphia to end that series, taking two from the Tigers, and then winning the first two vs. Baltimore (yes, the team with the best record). Since then, they’ve lost seven of their last eight.

When your offense and pitching are both failing, you end up with a long losing streak.

Right now, the Guardians are having issues scoring runs. In the last four losses, they haven’t put up more than three runs a game. And it’s tough to win that way.

But the starting pitching woes, which isn’t a recent problem, has reared its ugly head once again. In the seven-game streak, the most innings pitched by a Cleveland starter was the 5.2 hurled by rookie Joey Cantillo.

Here are the innings pitched by starters over these seven games: 4, 4, 5, 5, 4.1, 5.2, 4.2. And for all the people out there who think Vogt is giving away games, you cannot have Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis, Emmanuel Clase, and the other primary bullpen pitchers covering five innings every game.

Another annoying habit is the lack of shutdown innings from the pitching staff. Every team the Guardians scrape up some offense and get a lead, the pitchers give it right back, and that goes for starters and relievers. Even Smith has done it.

At the trade deadline, although there weren’t many decent starters moved, we felt it was curious to have the Guards’ brass cast their lot with two pitchers who haven’t thrown a big-league inning this year in Alex Cobb and Matthew Boyd.

It’s now the 11th of August, and those two moves have netted the Guardians the 4.2 innings thrown by Cobb Friday night.

Meanwhile, Paul Blackburn, who the Mets traded for from Oakland at the deadline has given them two starts of six innings.

Perhaps Cobb and Boyd are mainstays during the last six weeks of the season for Cleveland, but so far, they haven’t cured the biggest problem the Guardians have had in 2024.

And when your rotation is shorthanded, and the reliable hurlers don’t succeed, you have a long losing streak. Cleveland’s rotation was built around Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams, and Ben Lively. Bibee missed a start with shoulder inflammation, and Williams and Lively didn’t pitch well.

What Cleveland needs, despite the hitting issues, is a starting pitcher who will go out and put up zeros. Williams did that for the most part last night. Get a well-pitched game, a game where the pitching staff puts up a “0” after the Guardians score.

It isn’t time to panic, but it is time to turn things around. It’s a big advantage to have one of the two best division winning records once the season ends.

It’s Been Frustrating For Guardians’ Fans At Times, But The Wins Keep Coming

The last month for the Cleveland Guardians has been fascinating to be sure. Prior to last night, the offense has struggled in most games, with a team batting average of .223 and an OPS of 625.

By comparison, here is their OPS for the first three months of the season–April: 719, May: 715, June: 756. It’s a stark drop off to be sure.

Despite this, they are still 12-12 for the month with one game remaining against the Tigers, who Cleveland will have played 10 times by the time the calendar turns to August.

There is no question that a lack of hitting is the most frustrating thing for a fan to watch, and seeing your favorite team being shut out six times in a month certainly heightens fan angst.

We are no exception. Seeing the Guardians getting blanked by Tyler Phillips, Ryan Pepiot, Taj Bradley or a host of Tigers’ relievers drives us crazy too.

However, the amazing bullpen has allowed Steven Vogt’s squad to tread water, to not go into a period where they lose 15 of 20 games because the offense cannot produce runs.

That is truly remarkable.

Again, we get the frustration level. We feel it as well. But the Guardians still have the best record in the American League and the second-best record in baseball at 63-42.

Since the all-star break, Cleveland has won games 5-4, 2-1, 3-1, and 4-3. Before the Mid-Summer Classic, the won back-to-back games against the Giants by identical 5-4 scores. They scored four runs in a three-game series in Tampa and managed to win one of the contests.

They are 7-3 in one-run games during July, meaning in games not decided by a single tally, they are 4-8. This means many of their games are either nail biters or ones a viewer can watch something else after the fifth inning.

It is true that many of the top teams in the AL have also been going through a tough spell, the Orioles and Mariners are 9-12 in July, the Yankees are 8-13. Boston is 11-10, but have lost seven of their last nine.

The Guards, who have been one of the highest scoring teams in the league over the first three months of the season, are now sitting in the middle of the pack, seventh, and are now behind their division rivals, Minnesota and Kansas City in generating runs.

And frankly, the ballclub needs Jose Ramirez, Steven Kwan, and Josh Naylor to produce first and foremost.

Before last night’s performance, Ramirez had a 632 OPS with just a single home run and just six extra base hits and the same number of RBIs for the month. Naylor has only two dingers and an OPS of 665 and just five non-singles, while Kwan’s numbers aren’t bad, he has come down from the unworldly pace he was at, with a .275 batting average and 730 OPS since July 1st.

It is quite evident the real star of this Guardians’ team is the bullpen. When Cleveland has the lead after six innings (and sometimes less), Cade Smith, Scott Barlow, Hunter Gaddis, and the game’s best closer, Emmanuel Clase will lock it down.

That doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be nice to ease the workload of those guys though. It would bode well for the rest of the year and the post-season (fingers crossed) if the starting rotation picked up more of the load.

Those guys have kept this team out of long losing streaks, and despite the frustration of watching a team struggle to score runs, the Guardians are holding their own in the pennant chase.