Three Guardians Relievers Win A Major Category In The American League
It’s no secret that the Cleveland Guardians have the best bullpen in MLB.
The unit is not immune to the occasional meltdown, like it happened in the series opener against the Chicago Cubs on Monday, but there hasn’t been a single team with better relief corps in 2024.
There is depth and quality in the group.
As it turns out, three of the first five American League pitchers in ERA belong to the Guardians organization.
Among pitchers with a minimum of 50 innings pitched in the 2024 campaign, Clase has the best ERA at 0.64.
He is also close to making Guardians history and becoming the franchise leader in saves.
What he is doing is nothing short of amazing and might earn him some Cy Young votes.
The second-ranked hurler in ERA is also a Guardians reliever: Hunter Gaddis.
Gaddis was a mediocre starter up until 2023, but the Guardians were savvy enough to see his potential in shorter spurts and he is now an elite reliever with a high-90s fastball and a nasty slider.
He has been the most underrated member of the Guards’ bullpen and deserves much more recognition than he gets.
In fifth place, we have who should be viewed as a legitimate AL Rookie of the Year candidate: Cade Smith.
Smith has shown impressive strikeout ability and has posted an elite 2.02 ERA in 58 innings, with 79 punchouts.
With that incredible trio, the Guardians’ late leads are usually safe.
