Cleveland Sports Forum

Thank you for posting the story. I hope that Jones' family is doing well and fans have stopped trolling him. It's impossible to be perfect and I feel disappointed when a player does not succeed. It is however unfortunate that to be a successful professional athlete is very difficult and many good people don't have the careers that they hope for.
I'd like to see Jones be a success. And I would like to see Will Brennan be a success. And Johnnathan Rodriguez. And Johnkennsy Noel. There's not room for all of them and some will not realize their dreams. But harassing them is always wrong.

Welcome back to the Guardians Beat newsletter. My name is Tim Stebbins, and this is my first season covering Cleveland for MLB.com.

CLEVELAND -- The Guardians fortified their bullpen over the offseason, on the heels of its dominant 2024 season, by signing Paul Sewald and Jakob Junis to one-year deals. In the first few weeks of the ‘25 campaign, the right-handers have proven to be savvy additions.

Sewald and Junis have emerged as key contributors to manager Stephen Vogt’s bullpen as experienced veterans who are capable of pitching in a variety of situations. Entering Wednesday's game against the Orioles, Sewald is tied with Cade Smith for the team lead in appearances (nine), with Junis closely behind (eight).

Sewald has recorded a 3.38 ERA, allowing three earned runs on six hits over eight innings, with one walk and 11 strikeouts. Junis has thrown eight scoreless innings while scattering six hits and one walk with seven strikeouts.

The Guardians’ bullpen was a driving force behind their run to the ALCS last fall, when the group’s 2.57 ERA led the Majors. Emmanuel Clase, Hunter Gaddis, Smith and Tim Herrin each made at least 70 appearances. While they remain key cogs to the staff, Sewald and Junis have deepened it and given Vogt additional options in the middle and late innings.






Cleveland’s bullpen collectively is off to another strong start, ranking fourth in the Majors with a 2.58 ERA.

“Paul gives us another leverage late-inning pitcher with experience in doing that as a closer,” Vogt said. “And with Junis, the versatility of being able to pitch leverage and length [is valuable]. Their skill in itself adds so much to the bullpen, but the people [do] as well.”

Sewald, who’s in his ninth Major League season, has 85 career saves on his resume and won the World Series with the D-backs in 2023. The 34-year-old has pitched in the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and 10th innings for Cleveland. He recorded a save in the 10th of the Guardians’ 8-7 win over the Royals on Opening Day.






The Guardians value the experience Sewald brings on the mound, as someone who’s proven in late-game situations, as well as his ability to rub off on younger members of the bullpen.

“Paul Sewald is a leader,” Vogt said. “He's been through a lot of different things. He knows his routine. For a young bullpen, being able to have Paul Sewald show by example what it looks like to be a successful reliever is huge.”

Junis is in his ninth big league season, during which he’s made 200 appearances, including 116 starts. Vogt recalled how one of the first things the 32-year-old expressed to him after signing with the Guardians on Feb. 16 was a willingness to contribute however he is needed.






Junis has pitched in the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth innings and he’s capable of going multiple frames.

“He's just a great person,” Vogt said. “He loves his family and he loves to pitch, and he just wants the ball. … To have those two guys amongst our young bullpen, it's huge.”






 
CANTILLO SETTLING IN

One of the young arms in the bullpen whom Sewald and Junis can rub off on is lefty Joey Cantillo. The 25-year-old made the Guardians’ Opening Day roster as a reliever, after mostly starting in his professional career before this season.

“Everyone's got a good feel of what they're doing,” Cantillo said. “And the older guys do a good job of helping me out and making sure I know when to do this and that. It's just one of those things you kind of just piece together the more you do it.”

Cantillo made three postseason appearances out of the bullpen last year, and he has made 18 in the Minors, so he has some experience to fall back on. Doing it in the Majors exclusively, as he is now, is obviously still a transition, but he appears to be settling in.

Cantillo allowed five runs (one earned) on five hits and three walks with two strikeouts through his first two appearances, and he gave up a home run on Tuesday night in mop-up duty vs. the Orioles, but his three appearances in between were excellent. During that span, he threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings while allowing two hits and one walk with 10 strikeouts.






Cantillo has a four-pitch arsenal featuring a four-seam fastball, changeup, curveball and slider. When he’s attacking the strike zone, his stuff plays. He struck out four and didn’t allow a baserunner over two innings on Sunday vs. the Royals.

“I just think when I'm throwing well, I'm executing fastballs in the zone,” Cantillo said. “And when I'm not executing fastballs in the zone, I'm making it a lot harder for me to pitch. So just knowing that and being, ‘OK, I'm going to be aggressive with this pitch in the zone and then let all my offspeeds play from there."

“We've been working on some things, and it’s good to get ahead of guys like that and get through some outings.”

McKenzie is however not settling in.
Someday soon Walters should be returning to the majors. McKenzie is the only logical choice to depart.

Baseball America speculates on:
12 MLB Prospects & Pre-Arbitration Players Who Could Be In Line For Contract Extensions
https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories ... xtensions/

No Cleveland players listed I assume because they know Cleveland doesn't do that.

Welcome back to the Guardians Beat newsletter. My name is Tim Stebbins, and this is my first season covering Cleveland for MLB.com.

PITTSBURGH -- C.J. Kayfus has hit at every level of the Minor Leagues since the Guardians selected him in the third round of the 2023 MLB Draft. But in the early going this season, the 23-year-old first baseman has taken his game to another level.

Kayfus (the Guardians’ No. 8 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline) has come out of the gates scorching hot for Double-A Akron, having hit safely in all 12 games he’s played in. He entered Sunday slashing .444/.545/.733 with two doubles, four triples, one homer and 10 RBIs, with nine walks compared to 12 strikeouts.

“I would love for him to continue hitting .475 or whatever it is,” Guardians VP of player development Stephen Osterer quipped this week. “Unrealistic expectation. But he's crushing the ball right now.”

Sure, hitting at a near-.500 clip may not be a fair expectation, but Kayfus may be as well equipped to have a big year as he has ever been during his time in the Guardians’ farm system.






Last season, Kayfus hit .291/.393/.511 in 107 games between High-A Lake County and Akron, where he was promoted on June 3. But over his final 31 games from August onward, he recorded a .181/.262/.293 slash line.

Kayfus’ body was a key focus of his work over the winter, to help him sustain his production for the course of the season.

“He put a lot of time in this offseason on the physical side,” Osterer said. “I think we saw that transfer into some of his movements in his swing, and then the idea is to continue to impact the ball, and he's already done that. We're seeing a really locked in version of him, in a great physical spot, and obviously off to a hot start.

“We were obviously excited about him as a hitter last year and the progress he made in the offseason physically and the shape he's in. Hoping to see him continue to keep as much of a pace as he can to what he's doing right now.”

Kayfus is putting himself in position to potentially receive a promotion to Triple-A Columbus this season. Along with first base, where he’s played 887 2/3 innings over 102 games in the Minors, he’s seen extended time in left field (215 1/3 innings over 27 games).

For now, the Guardians have been impressed by what they’ve seen out of the gate.






“He worked on the things he needed to work on in the offseason, so he was ready,” Osterer said. “There's definitely a piece of the mindset [that] he did perform last year in Akron. He performed, obviously, at both levels.

“But coming back to [Double-A] and taking it a step further is, obviously, the work he put in on the physical side, the work that he put in on the swing and approach side, but also just the mentality and the mindset that he wants to take on a challenge and wants to go punish a level, more or less. We're obviously seeing that play out a little bit here.”

Here is a look at other Guardians prospects who have started the 2025 season strong:






Triple-A Columbus: LHP Parker Messick

Messick (Cleveland’s No. 13 prospect, per MLB Pipeline) has enjoyed a steady climb up the Guardians’ farm system since they selected him in the second round of the 2022 MLB Draft. Now in his first season with Columbus, the 24-year-old lefty has recorded a 2.57 ERA through three starts, having allowed four runs on 12 hits and five walks with 17 strikeouts over 14 innings.

High-A Lake County: SS Jose Devers

Devers (unranked) slashed .216/.289/.320 in 102 games last season, in his first taste of High-A. The 21-year-old is off to a hot start with the Captains this season, slashing .288/.383/.654 with seven doubles and four homers through 13 games. Cleveland signed him as an international free agent on July 2, 2019.

Single-A Lynchburg: RHP Jogly Garcia

Garcia (unranked) signed with Cleveland on April 12, 2022. The 21-year-old has recorded a 0.82 ERA in 11 innings over three appearances (one start), having allowed just two runs (one earned) with 20 strikeouts and four walks.






RAMÍREZ CLIMBING THE LEADERBOARDS

Now in his 13th season with the Guardians, José Ramírez is already one of the most decorated players in franchise history. On Friday, he continued his march up the Cleveland statistical leaderboards.

Ramírez smashed a double in the fifth inning of Friday’s 10-7 win over the Pirates, on a 108.9 mph line drive into the right-field corner. That moved him into fifth place in franchise history in doubles (368), breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Lou Boudreau. Ramírez also tied Tris Speaker for second in franchise history in extra-base hits, with 667.

Ramírez has a bit to go to catch Speaker for the franchise record in doubles (486), but he’s closing in on Earl Averill (377) and Joe Sewell (375), who rank third and fourth. Averill holds the franchise record for extra-base hits (724), another milestone not far from Ramírez’s reach.






• Kyle Manzardo broke out of his slump with a home run into the Allegheny River, while Nolan Jones reached base three times with family on hand. Read more >>

• Luis L. Ortiz returned to Pittsburgh and turned in his latest quality performance amid a promising first month with the Guardians. Read more >>






QUOTABLE

“Carlos just continues to amaze me. The way he takes care of his body, the way he prepares for every day. It takes a lot longer to get ready to play when you get up into your upper 30s, and Carlos is ready to go every day. He wants to play every day. He's off to a great start.” -- Guardians manager Stephen Vogt on 39-year-old Carlos Santana, who on Saturday joined Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen as the only active players to appear in 2,100 career games

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Kyle Manzardo’s 411-foot river shot is first by a Guardians player

Updated: Apr. 19, 2025, 9:45 p.m.|Published: Apr. 19, 2025, 9:28 p.m.

By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com

PITTSBURGH — Over the river and through the woods to grandma’s house we go is a beloved poem about Thanksgiving.

In Kyle Manzardo’s version, he doesn’t go over the river, he hits a baseball into it. That would be the Allegheny River where Manzardo’s 411-foot homer splashed down Saturday after clearing the right field bleachers at PNC Park.

“Happy, happy,” said Manzardo about his fifth homer of the season.

It came at an opportune time. The Guardians were clinging to a 1-0 lead against Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes, one of the top pitchers in baseball. Manzardo hit the first pitch he saw, a 93 mph split-finger fastball, and he hit all of it.

PNC Park isn’t McCovey Cove where kayakers eagerly collect water-bound home-run balls. Where exactly the currents of the Allegheny have taken Manzardo’s ball is unknown.

The Allegheny eventually flows into the Ohio River, so maybe when the Guardians travel to Cincinnati in mid-May, Manzardo can scoop it up, because Great American Ballpark is built on the banks of the Ohio River.

The right field bleachers at PNC Park are a magnet to left-handed hitters like Manzardo. As soon as he walked into the park on Friday for this three-game series, he started plotting and calculating.

“During BP, I like to check the dimensions out,” said Manzardo. “I want to see if I can go backside (opposite field) and then during BP slowly open it up.”

The ball left Manzardo’s bat at 107.8 mph.

“For Manzo to get one into the river is really a cool feat,” said manager Stephen Vogt. “It’s always something you can say you did. Yeah, it was a really cool moment.”

Vogt isn’t just living vicariously through Manzardo. He knows what it feels like to hit a ball into a body of water.

Vogt homered into the swimming pool at Chase Field on Aug. 29, 2015, while playing for Oakland. On Aug. 9, 2019, he homered into McCovey Cove against the Phillies as a member of the Giants.

The Pirates have kept a record of all the home-run balls that reach the Allegheny since PNC opened in 2001.

It is the 82nd time a ball has been hit into the Allegheny.

Manzardo is the 51st different player to do it.

He is the first player wearing a Cleveland uniform to do it.

Saturday was Skenes’ bobblehead day. A sellout crowd of over 37,000 attended. Manzardo and the Guardians spoiled the party with a 3-0 win.

“It’s cool. It’s fun to get to go up against a guy who is that good,” said Manzardo. “I tried to control my approach and wait for my pitches.”

In the seventh inning the waiting paid off.

Manzardo is hitting just .194 (12 for 62), but he leads the Guardians with five homers, 11 RBI and 11 walks. That’s helped him post a .816 OPS (slugging percentage + on-base percentage).

“The homer came at an opportune time,” said Manzardo. “We needed a run right there. And the swing felt great.”

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Guardians beat Paul Skenes, Pirates, 3-0; Kyle Manzardo homers into Allegheny River

Updated: Apr. 19, 2025, 9:32 p.m.|Published: Apr. 19, 2025, 6:44 p.m.

By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com

PITTSBURGH — Before Saturday’s game, manager Stephen Vogt said his team was excited to face Pittsburgh right-hander Paul Skenes.

“You want to face the best in the world,” said Vogt.

Skenes, the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2023, won the NL Rookie of the Year last season, started the All-Star Game and finished third in the NL Cy Young voting.

If he’s not quite the best in the world, the 6-foot-6, 260-pounder is close. Plus, it was Skenes’ bobblehead day, with fans lining up across the Roberto Clemente Bridge hours before first pitch to collect his image in plastic.

The Guardians beat Skenes and the Pirates, 3-0, in front of a sellout crowd at PNC Park. Ben Lively, who was pitching in Korea four years ago, threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings while Steven Kwan, Kyle Manzardo and Jose Ramirez drove in the runs.

Cleveland has won eight of its last 11 games at PNC Park.

Manzardo’s run was a wet one as he homered over the right field bleachers to start the seventh inning for a 2-0 lead. The ball bounced into the Allegheny River that flows behind the ballpark. The blast required some historical context.

It was the 82nd time a home-run ball has been baptized since PNC opened in 2001. Manzardo is the 51st player to do it and the first employed by Cleveland.

“Anytime you hit a ball that leaves the stadium it feels sweet,” said Manzardo. “I can’t say I’ve done something like that many times ... Happy, happy.”

The Guardians took a 1-0 lead against Skenes in the third on Kwan’s single to center. Daniel Schneemann opened the inning with a double to right and took third on Brayan Rocchio’s groundout to second.

Kwan, who entered the game hitting .320, won a six-pitch duel with Skenes when he sent as 98 mph fastball into center field with the count at 2-2. The threat ended when Nolan Jones hit into a double play.

Lively stopped the Pirates in the second and third innings.

Adam Frazier doubled to right with one out. The hit turned Jones every which way but loose, but he recovered in time to stop Frazier at second.

Lively retired Jared Triolo on a fly ball to the track in center that sent Frazier to third. The inning ended when Jack Suwinski lined out softly to short.

In the third, right after Cleveland took a 1-0 lead, Oneil Cruz singled with one out and stole second. Lively threw a called third strike past Bryan Reynolds on a 78 mph curve, and was bailed out of further trouble on a great diving stop and throw by Rocchio at short on a laser by Ke’Bryan Hayes.

Lively and reliever Cade Smith held strong again in the sixth to protect the 1-0 lead.

Cruz opened the inning with a walk and went to third on Reynolds’ single to left. Lively struck out Hayes on a 3-2 pitch to end his afternoon. Smith relieved and walked Emmanuel Valdez to load the bases. The next batter, Tommy Phan, grounded into an inning-ending double play at second base.

“Ben’s strikeout against Hayes was the turning point of the game,” said Vogt.

Said Lively, “I was ready to get all three outs. It was first and third and I’m thinking of every scenario possible. I got the punchout and I was ready to go get another one, and here comes Vogt.

“But it was good.”

The Guardians made it 3-0 on a sacrifice fly by Ramirez in the eighth. Rocchio walked with one out against Caleb Ferguson, who replaced Skenes to start the inning. Roccio stole second and took third on Kwan’s single before scoring on Ramirez’s fly ball to center.

The third run prompted the crowd of 37,710 to chant “Sell The Team” in reference to Pirates owner Robert Nutting.

Lively (1-2, 3.86) struck out three, walked one and allowed four hits in his first career win over the Pirates.

Skenes (2-2, 2.87) allowed two runs on six hits in seven innings. He struck out four and walked one in his first career appearance against the Guardians.

Lively, Smith, Tim Herrin, Hunter Gaddis and Emmanuel Clase combined to throw a six-hit shutout.

The Guardians threw an all left-handed lineup against Skenes. The first two runs came off the bats of lefties Kwan and Manzardo, who homered for the fifth time this year.

“I thought our approach against Skenes was outstanding,” said Vogt. “We were on the fastball, hitting it hard and he really didn’t use it after the third inning.

“I thought our at-bats were great all day long.”

What kind of day was it for the Pirates? Valdez appeared to hit a triple to start the ninth off Clase. He slid headfirst into the bag and was originally called safe by crew chief Chris Conroy. When Valdez took his hand off the base to call time, Ramirez alertly tagged him for the first out of the inning.

Valdez appeared to injure his right shoulder on the slide, which may explain why he didn’t hold the bag with his right hand, while calling time with his left.

“You never want to see anybody get hurt, but that’s Jose,” said Vogt. “The play’s not over until it’s over.”

Said Ramirez, “Yes, I was waiting for him to take his hand off the bag and call time.”

Clase retired the next two Pirates for his fourth save in five chances.

Next

LHP Logan Allen (1-1, 2.30) vs. RHP Mitch Keller (1-2, 4.30) Sunday at 1:35 p.m. EDT. CLEGuardians.TV, WTAM/1100 and WMMS/100.7 will carry the game.

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Guardians starter not backing down from challenge of biggest pitching matchups

Published: Apr. 20, 2025, 10:13 a.m.

By Joe Noga, cleveland.com

PITTSBURGH — Guardians pitcher Ben Lively has matched up against some of the top arms in baseball through his first five starts and has managed to give Cleveland a chance to win nearly every time out on the mound.

Saturday’s outing was no different as the Florida native faced Pirates phenom Paul Skenes on an 80 degree sunny day in front of a packed house at PNC Park. While the vast majority of fans were there to see what Skenes would do next, it was Lively whose gritty performance put his team in position to come away with a 3-0 win.

“It’s sick,” Lively said afterward with a smile from ear to ear. “It felt like a summer game. It was fun just getting back to it, working up a sweat. It was loud.”

Lively tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings, scattering four hits and walking one with three strikeouts. Pittsburgh put a runner on base in each of the first three innings, but Lively stranded them with timely punchouts and some help from his defense.

It is a formula that has worked well for Lively, who has faced some of the top arms in baseball through five outings this season. After moving up to the opening day slot when teammate Tanner Bibee was sidelined with food poisoning, the right-hander has matched up against No. 1s fom most teams, including Kansas City ace Cole Ragans twice, former Cy Young runner-up Dylan Cease in San Diego and White Sox top starter Shane Smith.

“When you face guys like that, you’ve got to be locked in because it could be a one-run ballgame, it could be a zero-zero ballgame the whole time and you’ve got to be on it,” Lively said. “It just locks me in a little bit more. It’s about taking that feeling into every single game.”

Manager Stephen Vogt said Lively is always going to be himself on the mound, and nothing will cause him to waver. He praised the right-hander for attacking the strike zone Saturday. Even when Lively got into bad counts, Vogt said he found a way to make pitches and get back into the at-bat, usually resulting in weak contact.

“He stepped up in a huge way for us today,” Vogt said. “That was Ben at his best.”

When Lively faded in the sixth inning, he was still able to come up with what Vogt called the turning point in the contest when he struck out Ke’Bryan Hayes with runners at first and third and nobody out.

“That was huge,” Vogt said.

Lively the competitor did not want to exit the ballgame with two runners still on base and the game not yet decided. “I’m thinking of every scenario possible,” Lively said. “Got that punchout and I was ready to go back for another one, but here comes 12 (Vogt). But it was good.”

But Vogt turned to Cade Smith, who walked the first batter he faced, but got Tommy Pham to ground into an inning-ending double play on the first pitch of his at-bat.

Vogt said the atmosphere Saturday created a little more intensity than a typical April ballgame, and Cleveland fans scattered throughout the ballpark added to that.

“Anytime you’re on the road, it’s just fun to play to a packed crowd,” Vogt said. “And man, the Cleveland fans show up here in Pittsburgh. It was really cool to see our fans travel and come support us on the road. It means a lot to us.”

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Gabriel Arias Keeps Thriving As A Regular

April 19, 2025

By Andres Chavez

Gabriel Arias has received countless chances in the past.

He wasn’t ready to thrive or to be an above-average starter in one of the Cleveland Guardians’ infield spots.

And that’s OK: not every prospect is born ready to be a major league star.

Some of them need to struggle at the highest level, adjust, and find what works for them.

We are witnessing that with Arias: it took him three full years of failures (2022, 2023, and 2024) at the MLB level to blossom into the middle-of-the-order masher he is looking like at the moment with his four homers, 10 RBI, and .846 OPS.

He had two more hits on Friday night, including a double, and is red-hot over his last seven games.

“Cleveland #Guardians INF Gabriel Arias collected a pair of hits tonight (2-5 2R 2B 2RBI) vs the Pirates including ths 2-run double in the 7th inning. Arias over his last 7 games: 10-26 7R 1(2B) 3HR 8RBI 2BB .385 AVG,” Guardians Prospective posted on X.

Three homers and a .385 batting average over seven games is nothing to sneeze at, even if the sample isn’t terribly large.

It’s fair to say that it’s the best Arias has looked as a major-league hitter in his career.

For all his struggles and the years it took him to reach this point, it’s easy to forget he is still just 25.
His main job is to sustain the gains he has made over the course of a full season.

It’s a huge challenge, but he is prepared to give it a go.

As long as he keeps decreasing that 29.4 percent strikeout rate (it was 30.5 percent a couple of days ago when we discussed Arias’ resurgence) and maintains his current quality of contact metrics, he will be fine.

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Will Smith



Guardians Infield Prospect Homers For Third Straight Game

April 20, 2025

By Andres Chavez

C.J. Kayfus, Travis Bazzana, Jaison Chourio, Will Brennan, and other Cleveland Guardians minor league position players are red-hot at the moment.

It has been a strong start to the season for the Guardians’ farm system.

Nobody, however, is hotter than Triple-A infielder Will Wilson.

The guy just shows up to the stadium, produces, and accumulates incredible numbers.

Those numbers will eventually result in a call-up to the major leagues, sooner or later.

On Saturday, he went yard for the third straight game.

He already has more homers this year than in his entire 2024 minor league season.

“Cleveland #Guardians INF prospect Will Wilson homered for the 3rd straight game today for Columbus hitting a 396 foot solo blast in the 9th inning vs Louisville that came off the bat at 104.7 mph. 2024 – 5 HR over 110 games. 2025 – 6 HR over 17 games. Season numbers: 22-64 16R 4(2B) 6HR 18RBI 10BB 1SB. AVG .344, OBP .440, SLG .688, OPS 1.128,” Guardians Prospective wrote on X.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1913767314371088696

The Guardians picked up Wilson in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft a few months ago.

Evidently, they have worked on his swing and made it much more dangerous.

It’s not like he had zero power: his career-high in a year is 18, between the San Francisco Giants’ Double-A and Triple-A teams in 2023.

It’s nothing if we compare it to what he’s doing right now in Cleveland, though.

Everything that comes off his bat is hard, which makes it much more difficult for the defense to successfully field the ball.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1913739740311847370

Will Wilson is absolutely ripping the ball.






The Guardians have had a lot of patience with shortstop Brayan Rocchio, and even though he is a phenomenal fielder, his bat is way behind.

If they decide to make a change, Wilson is certainly doing everything in his power to get the first shot.

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Guardians weekend sweep takeaways: Emmanuel Clase, Steven Kwan and Triston McKenzie PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 20: Kyle Manzardo #9 of the Cleveland Guardians celebrates with José Ramírez #11 after hitting a two run home run in the seventh inning during the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on April 20, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
By Zack Meisel

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April 21, 2025 3:00 am MST

PITTSBURGH — A fresh batch of thoughts on the 12-9 Guardians as they return to Progressive Field for a nine-game homestand against the Yankees, Red Sox and Twins…
Some numbers that caught my attention…

Hitters have swung at 31 of Joey Cantillo’s changeups this season, missing on 17 of those swings for an absurd whiff rate of 54.8%.

Kyle Manzardo was the first Cleveland hitter since PNC Park opened in 2001 to deposit a home run into the Allegheny River. Overall, 51 hitters have combined to whack 82 homers into the river. Manzardo already has more home runs this season (six) than he did last year in about twice the plate appearances.

The Guardians are 3-2 in Ben Lively’s five starts, even though he has opposed the following starters: Cole Ragans, Dylan Cease, Shane Smith, Ragans again and Paul Skenes. Cleveland has won three consecutive Logan Allen starts, as the southpaw has allowed only one earned run across 16 innings in that span.

Gabriel Arias has four multi-hit games in his last eight starts. Entering this season, he had 23 multi-hit games in 145 career starts.

Austin Hedges is averaging 4.46 pitches per plate appearance, which would rank third in the American League if he had enough trips to the plate to qualify.

The Guardians have played in only six games decided by one or two runs (28.6% of their games). Last year, 49.1% of their games were decided by one or two runs.
What will Luis Ortiz look like…

… in a few months? You can see the formula that can make him effective. He throws a 96 mph fastball, a 95 mph sinker and a 91 mph cutter that all move differently. He can drop in a changeup to complement the sinker, or a slider to complement the cutter. The key is command. But when he’s hitting his spots, those pitches all play off each other in harmony. By the summer months, will he have demonstrated some consistency?

Ortiz’s strikeout rate in 2024: 19.2%
Ortiz’s strikeout rate in 2025: 24.7%
Ortiz’s strikeout rate his last two starts: 42.9%

“He’s got a bunch of pitches going in a bunch of different directions,” said catcher Bo Naylor. “When you’re in the zone with multiple pitches, it doesn’t allow the hitter to be able to eliminate as much as they would like to.”
Difficult to envision a way out…

… for Triston McKenzie. If he had a minor-league option, this would be simple. Instead, he’s either stuck in Cleveland’s bullpen or banished to the waiver wire.

Let’s examine some data. Keep in mind, he has only logged 5 2/3 innings, so while it’s evident to anyone watching that he’s struggling, surface-level numbers aren’t necessarily reliable.

11.59 xERA: This isn’t much different than his actual ERA (11.12), but the expected ERA — the third-worst in the majors — reflects the type of contact hitters are making against him. He’s allowing an average exit velocity of 93.4 mph, one of the worst marks in the league.
23.3% walk rate: This is compounding the issue. He’s faced 30 batters, and nearly half have reached via walk or hit.
80.5% fastball rate: If a hitter assumes a fastball is headed his way, he’s right four out of every five times. Just line up the swing plane and whack it. Manager Stephen Vogt has harped on McKenzie needing to locate his curveball and slider for strikes, but he doesn’t have the confidence or mechanics to do that, because he simply isn’t throwing them. And even though McKenzie’s throwing his fastball harder than ever, and he ranks second in the majors in induced vertical break, and he gets great extension — all a fancy way of saying his fastball could be more effective than ever, but since hitters know it’s coming, they feast on it.

To complicate matters, since the Guardians can’t trust him in a non-lopsided game, there’s no way for him to get consistent work to try to escape this funk. At some point, if this continues, he’ll run out of time. Andrew Walters is ready whenever the Guardians need a fresh arm. Erik Sabrowski, Nic Enright and Franco Aleman, who are all on the mend, could be options at some point in May or June, too.
The end-of-season stat line I’d like to see right now is…

… Steven Kwan’s. He’s on pace for more than 30 home runs. He’s hitting .325 with an .879 OPS, with a career-best .494 slugging percentage. Can he sustain this through September? Each season, he finds new ways to torment pitchers. This year, it feels like he has something close to the finished product at the plate. He’s a threat to yank a fastball into the right-field seats. He rarely offers at anything outside of the zone. He can find a gap in the outfield grass as well as any hitter in the sport.

That’s probably why Gavin Williams shrugged when asked earlier this season how he would approach an at-bat against Kwan. “Flip one up there,” Williams said. “Hopefully he hits it on the ground. I don’t really know.”

The two squared off while rehabbing last season, and Williams said Kwan even pestered him in that low-key setting.

“He’s a pretty elite hitter,” Williams said. “I want to get people out in four pitches or less. Kwan fouls a lot of pitches off because he knows the strike zone very well, and he can get to about anything if he wants to.”
And if anyone forgot why Kwan’s won three Gold Glove Awards in three years…

… his defensive skill set was on full display last week. On Thursday, with Ramón Urías on first base, Gunnar Henderson hit an opposite-field double to left field. As Kwan chased after the fly ball, he slowed his pace for a second and raised his glove to fool Urías. Without that deke, Urías would have run full speed and scored. Instead, in the ensuing at-bat, Urías was picked off third.

On Friday, he corralled an Enmanuel Valdez double off the left-field wall and, without hesitation, twisted his body and launched a one-hopper to third base to nab Bryan Reynolds and take the bite out of a Pirates ninth-inning threat.

The most satisfied person in the dugout? Outfield coach J.T. Maguire, who has worked with Kwan since his nascent days in Cleveland’s organization in 2018. Maguire, a soft-spoken guy, said he was internally shouting with pride after the ninth-inning throw. Kwan’s ability to understand how the baseball will carom off the wall, to know how to position his body to uncork the proper throw and to know, while his back is turned toward the action, where to throw the ball, explains why he’s never not won a Gold Glove Award. The best word to describe it, Maguire said, is “savvy.”
Cleveland traded Casey Blake for some guy…

… who is still chugging along in the big leagues 17 years later. Carlos Santana appeared in his 2,100th game Saturday, the second-most among active players, behind only Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen. OK, so the trade was actually Blake to the Dodgers for Santana and pitcher Jon Meloan, who totaled 17 2/3 innings in the majors from 2007-09. Two of those innings came with Cleveland. Santana, meanwhile, ranks sixth on the franchise’s all-time home runs list and trails only Jim Thome on the walks leaderboard. Santana ranks 49th in major-league history in walks, and could stroll his way into the top 40 this summer. He could chase down Willie McCovey, Alex Rodriguez, Todd Helton, Eddie Murray, Manny Ramirez, Tim Raines and David Ortiz by the end of the season. Two-thirds of the names ahead of him on the all-time list are Hall of Famers, and many who aren’t — Barry Bonds, Pete Rose, Rafael Palmeiro, Rodriguez, Ramirez — have deserving numbers, but, well, uh, extenuating circumstances.

Most home runs by a CLE hitter
Jim Thome

337
José Ramírez

259
Albert Belle

242
Manny Ramirez

236
Earl Averill

226
Carlos Santana

218

Take a look at Emmanuel Clase’s recent pitch usage…

… and you’ll notice that, before his nightmarish ninth inning on Sunday, he had all but abandoned his slider. In his first three appearances last week, he threw 27 cutters and two sliders. The results: three save chances, three save conversions. On Sunday, in a 30-pitch root canal against the Pirates, he threw 19 cutters and 11 sliders. He continues searching for the formula that, before October, made him the league’s most reliable reliever. His numbers this season are jarring.

Clase in 2024: 74 1/3 innings, 39 hits, five earned runs, .154 opponent average, .392 opponent OPS
Clase in 2025: 10 1/3 innings, 20 hits, nine earned runs, .426 opponent average, 1.070 opponent OPS

1 newcomer on each team making an early impression

Guardians: OF Angel Martínez
Martínez was among the Guardians’ later roster cuts during Spring Training; he was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on March 21. But Cleveland called him up on April 9, to add a versatile option off the bench and additional center-field option as Lane Thomas recovered from a right wrist contusion. Martínez provided Cleveland’s lineup with an immediate spark, hitting .381 (8-for-21) over his first six games with one double, one triple and six RBIs while also playing strong defense in center. With Thomas back in the lineup, Martínez has moved around the diamond, and in all he has appeared in center (six games), right field (two) and second base (two). -- Tim Stebbins

Not surprisingly:
D-backs: 1B Josh Naylor
Naylor has fit in seamlessly with the Diamondbacks both on and off the field since he was acquired in the offseason from the Guardians. Arizona needed a replacement for first baseman Christian Walker, who departed via free agency, and they got it with Naylor. The veteran started off the season hot and recently had a power surge, homering in all three games of the team’s recent series in Miami. -- Steve Gilbert

and one we'd not expect to be making an impression anywhere:
Blue Jays: OF Myles Straw
Yes, Jeff Hoffman already looks like one of the most dominant Blue Jays relievers in years and Andrés Giménez is fitting right in, but Straw deserves his share of the spotlight here. Acquired in a deal that was all about adding international bonus pool space as the Blue Jays chased Roki Sasaki, Blue Jays fans had an awkward introduction to Straw after that pursuit fell flat. That’s not Straw’s fault, though, and all he’s done since camp opened is impress those around him, likely earning a role on this team even after Daulton Varsho (shoulder) returns soon. -- Keegan Matheson

a couple of others in days gone by
Cardinals: RHP Phil Maton
The Cardinals had a historically quiet offseason as they looked to reset their payroll and provide playing opportunities for their young core. However, they certainly hit on the one free-agent that they signed – even if Maton didn’t join them until halfway through Spring Training. Despite coming off a strong year, Maton had his option declined by the Mets, contract negotiations fell through with the Astros and he remained unsigned most of the offseason after pitching in a career-best 71 games in 2024. Admittedly pitching with a grudge, Maton has not allowed an earned run in a team-high 12 outings this season. Also, he has compiled four holds and a save while serving as the perfect setup man to closer Ryan Helsley. -- John Denton

Cubs: LHP Matthew Boyd
The easy answer here would be outfielder Kyle Tucker – especially given the Cubs’ overall offensive production out of the gate – but Boyd has been crucial so far, given some additional context. The Cubs recently lost rotation leader Justin Steele for the season due to left elbow surgery, throwing a wrench into the starting staff. While Chicago looks to strengthen the back of the group, Boyd has helped the top not miss a beat. Four turns in, the 34-year-old lefty has a 2.01 ERA with 20 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings, looking like a free-agent steal so far. -- Jordan Bastian

Martinez actually started nearly the same way last season [actually better in 2024] and then cooled off signficantly

This year 29-2-10-3 341/333/483
Last year 30-5-10-3 333/474/533 then after he returned from the minors in Sept he started hot again, for a while 14-2-7-1 500/567/572

Guardians Designate Triston McKenzie For Assignment

By Steve Adams | April 21, 2025 at 1:03pm CDT

The Guardians announced that right-hander Triston McKenzie has been designated for assignment. They’ve selected the contract of righty Zak Kent from Triple-A Columbus in his place. The DFA marks the culmination of a lengthy period of struggle that dates back to 2023 for McKenzie, who once looked like a potential building block in Cleveland’s rotation.

McKenzie missed significant time in 2023 with a UCL injury that never wound up requiring surgery. He struggled before and after a pair of lengthy IL stints that season and has yet to regain his footing. He’s also out of minor league options, so the Guards couldn’t send him to Triple-A. McKenzie was one of a handful of notable out-of-options players we highlighted as a potential change-of-scenery candidate this spring. Given his pre-injury track record, it seems likely that another club will take a chance on him, presumably via a minor trade but at the very least via waivers.

Back in 2022, a then-24-year-old McKenzie broke out with 191 1/3 innings of 2.96 ERA ball. He punched out 25.6% of his opponents against a terrific 5.9% walk rate. That ostensible breakout came on the heels of a four-year run in which McKenzie ranked among the sport’s top-100 prospects. He didn’t throw hard, sitting 92.5 mph with his four-seamer, but he generated swinging strikes and chases on pitches off the plate at rates well north of the average pitcher. Given the right-hander’s prospect status and Cleveland’s penchant for churning out quality pitchers on a near-annual basis, McKenzie looked like the next in a long line of homegrown rotation arms to call Progressive Field home.

The previously mentioned UCL injury limited McKenzie to only four starts in 2023, however, and he looked like a completely different pitcher in 2024. The lanky 6’5″, 175-pound righty saw his average fastball freefall to 91.1 mph last year. His once-plus command was gone. He walked 14.4% of his opponents in 75 2/3 innings after having dished out free passes at a grisly 17.8% clip during that injury-ruined 2023 season. He allowed an average of 1.18 homers per nine innings during his standout 2022 season but saw that mark skyrocket to 2.26 per nine frames in ’24.

No longer able to entrust McKenzie with a rotation spot, the Guardians looked elsewhere to fill in the starting staff this winter. They acquired righty Luis Ortiz from the Pirates and re-signed Shane Bieber to a two-year deal (with an opt-out) while he mends from last year’s Tommy John surgery.

McKenzie opened the 2025 season in the bullpen. The Guards surely hoped that he could either find his footing as a reliever or pitch his way back into consideration for a starting role. Neither has happened. While McKenzie’s velocity is back up to an average of 93.7 mph on his heater, that’s likely due to him working in short-relief stints as opposed to being asked to face a lineup two to three times per outing. He’s pitched only 5 2/3 innings this season and been clobbered for seven runs. Command is still a glaring issue; he’s served up seven hits (including a homer), walked seven of his 30 opponents (23.3%) and already been charged with three wild pitches. McKenzie has only set down four batters on strikes.

Any team to claim McKenzie or acquire him via trade will at this point be rolling the dice on a reclamation project. McKenzie hasn’t worked more than 1 2/3 innings in a single appearance this season, so he’s also not presently stretched out enough to join someone’s rotation even if they want to take a look at him as a starter. He could be built back up on the fly, but that’s a tough task when already asking a player to switch teams and go through all the inherent, associated changes (learning new coaches and catchers, making tweaks to delivery and pitch selection, etc.).

The Guardians can trade McKenzie or place him on outright waivers at any point in the next five days. Waivers themselves are a 48-hour process, meaning his DFA will be resolved within a week’s time at most. He’s earning $1.95MM this season. An acquiring club would be on the hook for about $1.69MM as of this writing (or a bit less depending on when he’s claimed/traded). He’s controllable for two additional seasons beyond the current campaign.

Turning to Kent, he’s a former Rangers farmhand whom Cleveland acquired in a March 2024 trade that sent international bonus pool space back to Texas. He missed the majority of the 2024 season due to an elbow strain, however. The Guards designated Kent for assignment last summer, released him and quickly re-signed him on a new minor league pact. (Injured players cannot be placed on outright waivers.)

Today’s promotion puts Kent in line for his MLB debut. He’s healthy again and pitching well in Columbus, where he’s tossed 7 2/3 frames of relief and held opponents to a pair of runs. Kent has allowed three hits and fanned 10, though his four walks are higher than he or the team would prefer, and he’s also plunked a batter.

Kent ranked in the Rangers’ top 30 prospects from 2022-24, per Baseball America, and he’ll head to MLB with a solid track record at the top minor league level. Kent carries a lifetime 4.00 ERA in 92 innings across parts of four seasons there, although that number is skewed a bit by last year’s injury-marred season. Kent was rocked for an ERA north of 7.00 in 23 innings there, though it seems fair to suggest his elbow injury contributed to those struggles. He’s posted strong numbers in each of his other partial Triple-A seasons. Subtracting the injury-plagued ’24 campaign, Kent has a 2.88 ERA in 68 2/3 Triple-A frames.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt: Emmanuel Clase still owns the ninth inning

Updated: Apr. 21, 2025, 4:51 p.m.|Published: Apr. 21, 2025, 4:44 p.m.

By Paul Hoynes, cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — On the fourth day, Emmanuel Clase rested. Thank goodness.

Manager Stephen Vogt told reporters that closer Emmanuel Clase would not be available for Monday night’s game against the Yankees because he pitched three straight games over the weekend against the Pirates.

Vogt was quick to add that Clase, the two-time winner of the Mariano Rivera award as the American League’s top closer, still owned the ninth inning for the Guardians despite his slow start to the season.

“One hundred percent,” said Vogt. “I haven’t even had the thought (about replacing him). Emmanuel Clase has been the best closer in the game for a number of years. He’s getting hit. He’s leaving the ball over the middle more than he should.

“But that doesn’t mean he’s not the closer. He’s still the best closer on the planet. There are some things we’re going to continue to work with him on. Emmanuel Clase is going to get the ball in the ninth inning when he’s available.”

Vogt would not say who would replace Clase if the Guardians have a save situation Monday night. He has options in Paul Sewald, Tim Herrin, Hunter Gaddis and Cade Smith.

“Every night is a different night in the bullpen,” said Vogt. “You know me, there are no roles. Clase is the only one with a role in the bullpen. We matchup to get their hitters out and put our pitchers in a position of strength.”

Clase, who converted 47 of 50 save chances last year while forging a 0.61 ERA over 74 1/3 innings, has struggled since opening day. He saved Friday and Saturday’s game against the Pirates, but it looked like he was pitching on egg shells.

The egg shells broke Sunday as Clase allowed three runs pn four hits in the ninth inning, turning a 4-1 Cleveland lead into a 4-4 tie. The Guardians won it on Kyle Manzardo’s sacrifice fly and Joey Cantillo’s first career save in the 10th.

Clase is 3-0 with a 7.84 ERA (nine earned runs in 8 2/3 innings). He’s saved four games in six chances, but the opposition is hitting .426 against him.

In Clase’s time of need, the Yankees are probably the last team he wants to see. This will be the first time the two teams have met since October when the Yankees eliminated the Guardians at Progressive Field in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series.

Clase went 0-1 with a 15.43 ERA in that series. He allowed seven hits and four earned runs in 2 1/3 innings. In the regular season last year, Clase allowed five earned runs in 74 1/3 innings.

In the eighth inning of Game 3, with the Guardians protecting a 3-1 lead, Clase allowed consecutive two-out homers to Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton to give New York a 4-3 lead.

The Guardians came back to win that game in 10 innings on David Fry’s homer, but the eighth inning was emblematic of how the postseason went for Clase. In a lot of ways, those postseason ghosts have followed him into 2025.

This is a different Yankee team than last year’s edition that lost the World Series to the Dodgers. Stanton is on the injured list. Juan Soto signed with the Mets, but Judge is still a Yankee and one of the most productive hitters in baseball.

He’s hitting .390 (32 for 82) with seven homers and 25 RBI.

“Soto is one of the best hitters in the game and Giancarlo is one of the best power hitters in the game,” said Vogt. “They both did a lot of damage against us the last time they were here.

“But the Yankees also have Cody Bellinger, an unbelievable left-handed hitter. The Yankees still have a great lineup top to bottom.

“When you take those two names out of it (Stanton and Soto), it may sound better for the opposition, but it’s not. This is a very good offensive team.”

And Clase, at some point in the series, will most likely have to deal with it.

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