A Good Homestand Buoys Some Concerns For The Guardians

When the Cleveland Guardians came home after their season opening nine game trip, it seemed like the team was running in quicksand a bit.

The defense was shaky, the offense only had four players (Steven Kwan, Jose Ramirez, Carlos Santana, and Kyle Manzardo) hitting, and the pitching, usually the hallmark of any Cleveland team was not very good.

Then they came back to Progressive Field, and the pitching found itself, allowing only 10 runs in a six-game span, although to be fair, the horrible Chicago White Sox were the first three games, and they only tallied three times in the trio of games.

This is not to say everything is fine and there are no worries, but the Guardians sit at 8-7 now after 15 games, sitting a game behind Detroit in the AL Central standings.

The starting pitching was much better, but the number of innings the rotation is providing is a problem. The farthest any starter went on the homestand was the six innings provided by Ben Lively on Sunday. Luis Ortiz went 5.2 on Saturday and was outstanding, striking out 10 Kansas City hitters.

The biggest issue is that the starters are throwing a lot of pitches to get through five innings. Friday night, Tanner Bibee held the Royals scoreless for 4.2 frames but had to come out after tossing almost 100 pitches.

The same was true with Gavin Williams last start. The opposition isn’t scoring, but the pitchers aren’t being economical about it.

Bibee has walked seven in 14.1 innings this year. Williams has six in 13 frames, and Logan Allen seven in 10 innings.

Of course, this puts an enormous load on the bullpen. Paul Sewald, Jakob Junis, and Cade Smith have already been in 8 of Cleveland’s 15 games to date, and Emmanuel Clase, Hunter Gaddis, and Tim Herrin have been in seven. We know the Guardians are very protective of these relievers, but they had to carry a huge load a year ago.

Something to keep an eye on as the season goes on.

We also think at times; Steven Vogt creates this issue. Allen was pulled after 83 pitches and two out in the fifth with a 3-1 lead. Yes, there were runners on second and third, but why not give the young pitcher a chance to get out of it?

The offense is still struggling, hitting just .222 as a team, but they received a boost this week from Angel Martinez, who was called up because Lane Thomas has a bruised wrist after getting hit by a pitch.

The switch-hitter went 5 for 10 in three starts, with a pair of doubles and three runs knocked in. Gabriel Arias had a solid week as well, getting 5 hits in 17 at-bats with a pair of home runs.

There are still too many players who are simply not contributing at the plate. Daniel Schneemann has started 2 for 22. Nolan Jones has drawn six walks, tied for third on the team, but is 5 for 35 with 16 Ks. Jhonkensy Noel is 6 for 32 and has only fanned six times but doesn’t have an extra base hit.

Still, Ramirez has not gotten hot, outside of his three dinger game against the Angels.

But the length of the lineup was a concern coming into the season, and it doesn’t look like it has gotten any longer. Cleveland still has a below average offense. The league is scoring 4.12 runs per game, the Guardians are at 3.93.

It’s a good sign the Guards have started out 7-2 vs. the Central, but they haven’t played Detroit or Minnesota. The Orioles should be a good test for the pitching over the next three days.

Hopefully, the starters can start going at least six innings on a regular basis.

A Different Opening Trip For Guardians Compared To 2024

It’s Opening Day in Cleveland and that’s a certain sign of spring, despite today’s weather forecast. However, the Guardians aren’t coming home with momentum like they did last season in manager Steven Vogt’s first season.

Because of the renovations to Progressive Field, the Guards spent the first nine contests on the road in 2024 and starting hot, arriving in town with a 7-2 record, in route to a 19-10 mark at the end of April.

This season hasn’t been the same. Cleveland won the season opening series at Kansas City, taking two of three, but the west coast was not kind to the team, as they dropped five out of six in San Diego and Los Angeles against the Angels.

Until Luis Ortiz went six innings in the last game of the trip, no starting pitcher completed that many innings on the sojourn. All in all, Cleveland pitching has the second worst ERA in the American League at 5.09 and is tied for second in allowing the most home runs, giving up 14 gopher balls.

The defense has also been a concern, leading the AL in errors to date. Jose Ramirez has made four errors, mostly not coming up with ground balls. Cleveland pitchers have already allowed eight unearned runs, so the mistakes have been costly.

The baserunning hasn’t been crisp either. The Guardians picked up their first stolen bases of the season on Sunday, their ninth game. They’ve been caught four times. And we’ve seen Gabriel Arias thrown out at third in San Diego with men on first and second and no one out, and Brayan Rocchio allowing himself to get tagged out on a double steal attempt with Steven Kwan at the plate.

The latter also should be filed in the curious managing file.

These kinds of mistakes make us wonder if training camp was a little less focused this season coming off winning the AL Central last year.

Offensively, the Guardians are ninth in runs scored, but averaging only 3.78 per game. To be fair, the league average of 4.37 is bloated by the Yankees and Red Sox’ figures, but outside of Kyle Manzardo, no relatively young player has stepped up.

Against the Royals, Guardians’ hitters fanned 18 times and drew 16 walks. In the last six games, Cleveland hitters have struck out 59 times with the same number of bases on balls in twice the amount of games.

Rightfield continues to be a problem as Nolan Jones and Jhonkensy Noel have combined to go 4 for 38 with 13 punchouts and just three walks and only two RBI, both coming on outs.

Lane Thomas has also struggled at the dish, getting off to a 5 for 29 start that includes just one extra base hit. The bench group of Daniel Schneemann, Johnathan Rodriguez, and Austin Hedges have combined to go 2 for 22 in the young season.

Having young players in part-time roles in tough on them, as it is hard to produce with sporadic at bats. That’s an excuse for Rodriguez. It is more than likely that Schneemann will be a utility guy for his career, so he needs to hit when he’s in the lineup.

Look, it is still early. In fact, it is very early. Our concern is we aren’t seeing the crisp baseball we saw a year ago. And we haven’t even talked about how the bullpen has struggled so far.

Starters Throwing Strikes, Hitters Striking Out. Two Early Problems For Guards

It’s early folks, it’s extremely early.

We know the MLB Network is already making projections on how many home runs the Yankees will hit this year with their new torpedo bats, and have also started the ridiculous MVP Ladder, but the reality is the Cleveland Guardians and most Major League teams have played just six games.

There are still 156 to go. Remember, one of the sport’s old adages: You can’t trust what you see in April or September.

However, since we wanted to have some discussions about the Cleveland Guardians’ start to the season, we have just those half dozen contests to go on.

Our impressions? Nothing that would differ with anything we thought going into the season.

The starting pitching, save for Tanner Bibee and Gavin Williams, has been for lack of a better term, shaky.

Luis Ortiz, who came over for Pittsburgh in the three-way deal involving Andres Gimenez, had problems throwing strikes, walking four in 4.2 innings, and also allowed nine hits. The concern is Ortiz had the same issue in exhibition play. Logan Allen wasn’t bad in his first start holding San Diego scoreless for four innings, but he walked five in 5.1 innings, and eventually the free passes came back to haunt. He had control problems in 2024.

And the impenetrable bullpen been shaky, with Emmanuel Clase blowing a save in the season openers, and Cade Smith and Hunter Gaddis had some issue in the loss in Kansas City.

Oh yeah, and Joey Cantillo, who probably should be in Columbus starting games for the Clippers, has had issues throwing strikes out of the bullpen.

Offensively, things looked good in KC with the Guards garnering almost as many walks as strikeouts.

But against the Padres, Cleveland hitters whiffed 33 times, including 16 in the middle game of the set, and walked just five times.

You aren’t going to score many runs with that ratio, and the Guardians didn’t, crossing the plate just four times in the three games.

The usual contributors offensively have been fine. Steven Kwan is off to an 8 for 23 start and a .400 on base percentage. He still hasn’t seemed to earn any respect for the men in blue, being called out on strikes on several questionable calls.

Jose Ramirez missed a game with an injured wrist but is 5 for 17 with a homer and two other extra base hits.

We were concerned about the production of the team against right-handed pitching, and a few of the players Steven Vogt needs to be solid vs. those arms have struggled.

Kyle Manzardo, who surprisingly has been a terror vs. southpaws is just 1 for 14 vs. righties. Bo Naylor is just 1 for 12 with seven whiffs, and Carlos Santana, who struggled from the left side last season is just 3 for 14 with just one walk.

And two of the three hitters we have contact concerns about, Gabriel Arias and Nolan Jones, have accumulated 13 Ks and two walks. Arias has had success though, getting off to a 6 for 19 start.

Cleveland travels Los Angeles this weekend for a series against the Angels, who are off to a surprising 4-1 start before finally getting home, and hopefully, the starting pitching does a better job, particularly in throwing strikes.

And they get to come home, which should help the team get comfortable.

Prediction For Guardians? We Just Don’t Know…

Today is the real Opening Day for Major League Baseball, and the Cleveland Guardians open their defense of the AL Central Division title against Kansas City. Because of the renovations to Progressive Field, it will be a week and a half before the Guards play in Cleveland.

Can they defend the title and get back to the post-season in 2025? Much like many players on the roster, we say “we just don’t know”.

While the influencers will tell you the Guardians had a solid off-season, we disagree. Their biggest question marks following the season were an offense that was shaky, and ahead of only Detroit among playoff squads in the AL and a starting rotation that had only one proven starter in Tanner Bibee.

During the winter, they traded their second-best home run hitter in Josh Naylor and replaced him with a player who was not good vs. right-handed pitching. They did add a starting pitcher, although one who has just 34 starts at the major league level.

They say if you want to know about a player’s performance, most likely it is reflected on the back of their baseball card, meaning once a player is established, he will likely do what he usually does. And that’s our issue with the 2025 Cleveland Guardians.

We look around and simply have no idea what to expect about of several players projected to be starters for Cleveland.

We like the potential of Kyle Manzardo, Brayan Rocchio, Bo Naylor, and a rightfield platoon of Nolan Jones and Jhonkensy Noel, but if you asked us to place a substantial wager on how successful they will perform this season, we would decline.

Same goes for the rotation. We have confidence in Bibee, and Gavin Williams appears to be back to the guy he was in 2023 when he came up, but figuring out what Ben Lively, Logan Allen, and Ortiz will do?

The biggest strength Cleveland had a year ago was the bullpen, and veteran baseball people will tell anyone that listens it is the most volatile area on any team. Think about it, last year at this time, no one had any clue that Hunter Gaddis, Cade Smith, and Tim Herrin would be as dominant as they were.

To think they will all repeat those seasons again is foolish. Maybe Paul Sewald regains his form and someone like Andrew Walters pitches great or Trevor Stephan returns during the year and picks up the slack.

Because of the way the Guardians do their business, it is likely this will be the case for the Guardians every year going forward, particularly under the Dolan ownership. What we mean is perhaps there will never be more than a couple of players who have track records.

However, on this basis, we don’t feel the Guardians will repeat as division champions. Of course, if three or four of the question marks turn out to be productive, Steven Vogt’s crew could win 90 games and make the post-season yet again.

So, what will the 2025 season hold for the Cleveland Guardians? We just don’t know. If we have to guess, let’s say 85 wins and second place in the AL Central.

Guardians Make A Weird Deal

The Cleveland Guardians had an inordinate number of versatile players on the roster and thinned that herd by one over the weekend when they traded Tyler Freeman to Colorado for Nolan Jones.

If you are a regular reader of this site, you know we have advocated for Freeman many times because of his minor league pedigree. However, it hasn’t translated to success in the majors. In 560 big league at bats, he batted just .223 with a 632 OPS.

Jones was with the Guardians in 2022 and was Cleveland’s second round draft pick in 2016. When he was called up in July of ’22, he was impressive, batting .286 with an 857 OPS in 18 games. He was patient, drawing eight walks to go with 17 strikeouts and had six extra base hits.

In August, it was a different story. Jones went 5 for 30 with 14 punchouts and didn’t draw a walk. He was traded to the Rockies for Juan Brito, who had a shot at the second base job this spring training.

Apparently, this convinced the Guardians’ front office he wasn’t capable of holding down a starting job.

Jones had an excellent season in 2023 for the Rockies, hitting 20 homers and stealing 20 bases with a 931 OPS. He did strikeout a lot, almost at a 30% rate and had a .389 on base percentage. But his home and road splits, always a factor for a hitter in Colorado, were pretty much the same.

Last year, he battled knee and back injuries, and his numbers fell off greatly with just a 641 OPS and 91 whiffs in 297 plate appearances.

So, the question is, which player are the Guardians getting? If spring training is any indication (and it usually isn’t), it’s the latter. Jones is 11 for 47 with no homers and 14 strikeouts in exhibition play to date.

But the trade also makes us wonder what the Guardians’ philosophy is in terms of hitting. For many years, they looked for players who made contact figuring they could teach them how to drive the ball. The biggest success stories in this regard are Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez.

However, they appear to be embracing two players in Jones and Gabriel Arias who have power, but also a lot of swing and miss in their games. We can add Jhonkensy Noel in that group as well.

We had someone comment to you that a platoon of Jones and Noel in rightfield could result in over 200 strikeouts. And for those who will say we are anti-strikeout, we say we can live with them if there are walks and production to go with it.

Jim Thome struck out a lot, the second most all-time, but he hit over 600 homers and had a career .402 on base percentage. We know he’s a Hall of Famer and that his number are extreme. Travis Hafner was another hitter who fanned a bunch but was a very productive hitter.

Another thing that troubles us about Jones is the back issues. He’s only 27-years-old and a back problem at that age is a bit of a red flag.

It is also interesting that the Guardians are looking for a power bat, particularly from the left side. It seems to us they had one and traded Josh Naylor because they didn’t want to pay him this season.

Jones does have a cannon for an arm, so the defense in probably better with him in that spot.

Hopefully, Nolan Jones returns to his 2023 form, a solid power and speed combination. If the ’24 version is the true Jones, then they are still waiting for a decent option in RF.

Four Guys Who Need To Show For Guardians

Spring training numbers don’t matter if you are Jose Ramirez or Steven Kwan, or even someone like Lane Thomas, whose spot on the roster is assured.

But when you are trying to establish yourself as a Major League player, you probably need to put up some numbers to get big league at-bats when the season kicks off next week.

The Guardians have several players who are in that boat, they haven’t really proven anything at the big-league level, and some of those guys are struggling in Arizona.

Other guys have done well in exhibition play, but how they have performed thus far in the majors have a casting a jaundiced eye.

We have really like Tyler Freeman since he made his major league debut. His minor league pedigree says he should be a solid bat. His AAA numbers are .399/.403/802. Overall in the minors he has a .384 on base percentage.

But he’s had 637 plate appearances with Cleveland and has a .223 batting average with a .304 on base and 632 OPS. He’s been solid this spring going 10 for 32 with two homers and four walks.

How much does the brass trust him?

Then you have someone the front office is giving one last shot to, Gabriel Arias, who is out of options. Arias’ minor league numbers aren’t as impressive as Freeman’s (.337/.456/793 at AAA), but he has the metric the new age folks love–exit velocity. He hits the ball hard. When he hits it.

And that is Arias’ problem. His strikeout rate is 32.3%. The league average is 22.6%.

He hasn’t been strong in the spring training games either, going 8 for 35 with nine whiffs and a 707 OPS. However, most people feel he will open the season at second base.

Will Brennan is another player that needs to start showing something. Brennan came up during the stretch drive in 2022 going 15 for 42 with a HR. That followed a minor league season in which he hit .314 with an 850 OPS. That got people excited.

In the two years since, he’s had over 800 big league at-bats and put up numbers of .308/.377/685. That’s a below average OPS. He’s been solid during the spring, going 9 for 34 with a couple of homers and an 806 OPS.

What would we like to see from Brennan? More patience. He seems to swing at the first pitch a lot and if you don’t have a lot of pop you need to be able to draw walks. Singles’ hitters who don’t walk are very replaceable.

Bo Naylor doesn’t have to worry about making the team, he’ll be the primary catcher, but it remains to be seen what kind of hitter he will be in the bigs. In the second half of ’23, Naylor hit .252 with 10 home runs and an 893 OPS.

His strikeout to walk ratio was 35:25.

Last season, he hit .201 and that ratio was 122:29. Which hitter is he going to be? This spring he has gone 8 for 37 and has drawn three walks with seven punchouts.

For a team that seems to have offensive questions, it would be great if Naylor is a viable hitter. And it would be great for Naylor because 2023 draftee Cooper Ingle will start the year at Akron and is showing signs he can swing the bat.

These guys are on the spot both now and for the first month or two of the season. Can any of them emerge for the Guardians

Talking Leadership (Or Lack Of It) In Cleveland Sports

Leadership is a tricky thing. You can’t quantify it, and we know there are classes which teach it, it is really something you have to be comfortable with.

For the Cleveland Guardians, there is no question that Jose Ramirez is their leader on the field. Ramirez plays the game the right way and even though he’s had several top five MVP finishes, and is likely headed to Cooperstown, he still plays like he did when he was a rookie.

If you are a guy who doesn’t play much and you see Ramirez doing that, no doubt you will do the same, or you won’t be around long. Add in that he also talks to teammates during games, telling them what to look for and giving them tips on how to be better, and it is a perfect combination.

For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell had a meeting with Kenny Atkinson before the season started and they discussed reducing his minutes and “workload”, thus empowering his teammates. Mitchell did just that and you see him during games encouraging and cajoling the other players.

That’s leadership.

On a team, no one has to step up and say he’s the leader. The other players know who it is. One thing we always say is a leader doesn’t have to say he’s the leader, in fact, someone who tells you they are the leader usually isn’t.

Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. We had an interesting discussion the other way with someone who didn’t like the Browns paying Myles Garrett what they did because he’s not a leader.

Our response was it would be nice if your best player was the leader, like in the case of the Guardians and Cavaliers, but it’s not a necessity. The Browns are paying Garrett because of his ability, the fact that every team has to gameplan for him. And that’s alright.

It’s an issue for the local football team because there is a serious leadership void throughout the organization. We have recently referenced the phrase “collaborative effort” when it comes to decision making. That approach does not foster leadership for anyone.

In the recent NFLPA poll, head coach Kevin Stefanski received a grade of C from the players. We don’t know how many players on the Browns responded to the poll, but a few people we have talked to said the grade could stem from none of the players knowing who is in charge.

Is it Stefanski and GM Andrew Berry? Is it Jimmy Haslam? Or even the mysterious Paul DePodesta? Who is the ultimate guy? Perhaps the players feel that void.

It was very telling that backup quarterback Jameis Winston spoke to the team before games. The starting QB didn’t have that gravitas.

Does the organization not want any vocal leaders? They don’t seem to have drafted any recently. Is that because Stefanski doesn’t want or like players like this.

Going back to the Guardians, Terry Francona always liked a veteran player in the clubhouse to echo what he wanted, so it was better coming from a fellow player. It was important to have Jason Giambi and Mike Napoli on the team for that reason.

The Browns haven’t had that. Yes, everyone in the locker room respects Nick Chubb for his work ethic and toughness, but he doesn’t seem like a vocal presence.

Filling the leadership void might be the biggest need the Browns need to address. It is just as important, if not more important than the measurables.

Looking At Guardians’ Battles With Just Over Two Weeks Left

When spring training started for the Cleveland Guardians, there were a few position battles to watch, and the makeup of the starting rotation was unstable. With the exhibition slate about half over and the regular season starting in a little over two weeks, here is an update.

Second base. We think the front office was hoping rookie Juan Brito would take the spot, although others figured Gabriel Arias would get a good shot since he is out of options.

Brito has struggled to date, going 2 for 21 with seven strikeouts, but two homers. More than likely, we will go back to AAA to start the year. Most insiders think Arias will be the opening day starter, but he hasn’t set the world on fire, going 6 for 24 with just one walk.

Perhaps the guy who should get the gig is Tyler Freeman (8 for 19 with 3 doubles and a home run). We like Freeman, who has always hit in the minors, and last year played mostly in centerfield, and we will get to that later.

Our opinion? We think we know what Arias is. He has some pop in his bat but doesn’t make enough contact. Sometimes, the front office ignores evidence.

Rightfield/Outfield. Steven Kwan is the leftfielder. Now it gets complicated. Lane Thomas will be somewhere in the outfield on an everyday basis. The Guardians were no doubt hoping Chase DeLauter could be a factor, but injuries got in the way again.

Going into camp, the hope was rightfield would be a platoon of Will Brennan and Jhonkensy Noel. We aren’t a fan of the former because singles hitters who don’t walk are kind of useless.

And our concern about Noel is the swing and miss in his game, and he has fanned 10 times in 26 plate appearances this spring.

If Arias wins the 2B job, does Freeman become involved here as the platoon partner for Brennan? We think Freeman is a hitter (Bo Naylor is another) who didn’t mesh with Chris Valaika last season, and perhaps he is getting back to his natural swing/approach at the plate.

A long shot would be Johnathan Rodriguez, who had a cup of coffee with the big club last year. He is just 3 for 15 and a home run, but has walked seven times.

Starting rotation. Coming into camp, Tanner Bibee and newcomer Luis Ortiz were the only locks. Through three appearances in Arizona, Gavin Williams looks like he did as a rookie and seems to have sewn up a spot. Williams has fanned 16 in eight innings, allowing just five hits and a single run.

Ben Lively has had three solid starts and would seem to be the fourth starter. The hope was Triston McKenzie would claim the fifth spot but walked five batters in an outing and gave up seven hits in 3.2 innings yesterday. His WHIP is 2.21.

Who gets that spot? Joey Cantillo has been starting but has walked six hitters in six innings. On the other hand, Logan Allen has been strong, giving up just one run in 10.2 innings, striking out 10 and more importantly walking only two and only allowing one home run.

Rookie Doug Nikhazy is the sleeper, although we would expect him to open at Columbus. The southpaw has pitched seven innings allowing just one hit thus far. However, Allen has faced the more experienced hitters thus far.

The lack of minor league options though probably puts McKenzie on the roster anyway. Perhaps he’s used as a mop up option until he can find the strike zone.

The Guardians always seem to paint themselves in a corner with these players who have no options left. We would like to see them trust their judgment a little earlier in the process.

Thinking Like A Coach Or GM

At times we are asked why we think Cleveland area teams should look to add to the roster. It has come up recently because we have written several pieces about how the Guardians should sign a veteran starting pitcher because there are several available on one-year deals.

We would also like the Cavaliers to add another big man, either on the buyout market or from the G-League.

First of all, and this probably comes from our coaching days, we have been trained to look for what needs improvement on a given team. We think there isn’t a team out there that doesn’t have either a weakness or could use a slight improvement to its roster.

Sometimes, it would be a subtle move, such as could you find a better “last man” on the roster. That seems silly to some, but it is how coaches and general managers need to think.

Fans look at players and teams and think if everything goes right, the team they follow will be very good. For example, there are people (influencers, since they were kind of in the spotlight this week) who believe Kyle Manzardo, Juan Brito will become all-stars, and Bo Naylor will return to his 2023 form and the Guardians will repeat as Central Division champions.

Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff are probably hoping that is indeed the case, but they also should be coming up with a contingency plan in case everything goes in the other direction. We believe they are concerned, but perhaps their hands are tied from making such a move.

There is an old adage in baseball that at the end of the year, a players’ numbers will be close to what the back of their baseball card says. But when a player only has one or two lines on that card, it is tough to judge him or her.

Not having a track record is likely the thing that worries an executive more than anything else.

We discussed the starting rotation for Cleveland the other day and really, there is only one hurler, Tanner Bibee, with any kind of record of success as a starter, and he only has two years in the big leagues. Every other candidate for the rotation should be viewed as huge question marks.

And, by the way, we are fans, just like you, and we want all of those pitchers to do well. But we haven’t seen any evidence that calms our fears.

As for the Cavs, on Friday night, we saw Jarrett Allen leave the game with a hand injury. Hopefully, all is good, and Allen plays tonight, but what if this happened near the end of the regular season or the playoffs?

If Allen were to miss a significant amount of time in the post-season, the Cavs probably are in trouble, but if it would be a game or two, you can’t just have Tristan Thompson as the only alternative. That’s why we (and the Cavs’ brass) would be looking for another big man.

They don’t need a starter, just someone who could provide five to ten minutes in an emergency situation.

The coaches and executives need to plan for any problems that should arise, and that’s how they are trained to think. It’s also why they have a lot of stress in their jobs and feel more relieved than happy when things go well.

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.