The Cleveland Guardians continue to add firepower to their bullpen. This time, they did so with reliever Shawn Armstrong. The Guardians gave him a one-year, $5.5 million contract with a mutual option for the 2027 campaign.
And, according to team analyst Joe Noga, he’s expected to have a major role right out of the gate:
“[Shawn Armstrong is] really going to provide that backup and that sort of a security blanket for the back end of the bullpen with Smith and Gaddis back there,” Noga said of Armstrong filling a crucial role.
Armstrong will make his return to the team that got him in the 18th round of the 2011 MLB Draft. He spent three years with the team from 2016 to 2017.
The right-hander is coming off a strong season with the Texas Rangers. He posted a 2.31 ERA in 74 innings of work, even making a couple of starts and logging a 3.07 FIP. He also had a 0.81 WHIP, which ranked second in all of baseball among pitchers with 50+ innings of work. If that wasn’t impressive enough, he limited opposing hitters to a. 157 batting average, the third-lowest.
The Guardians are clearly looking to strengthen their bullpen. They already got Peyton Pallette from the Chicago White Sox in the Rule 5 Draft, and they signed Colin Holderman and Connor Brogdon to one-year contracts.
Armstrong might be their biggest offseason signing, however. He’s made 370 appearances in his career, and he will most likely be one of Stephen Vogt’s most trusted arms. He’s elite at avoiding hard contact, and he was stellar in terms of not giving up the long ball.
And with Hunter Gaddis and Cade Smith holding down the fort down the stretch for this team, this bullpen might be one of the best in all of baseball again next season.
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