The battle to make the Cleveland Guardians’ starting rotation could be the most competitive position battle on the team during spring training. With five spots available for the six contenders, every appearance carries significant weight.
Cleveland will get a full look at those pitchers over the next couple of days, as the next three games will complete the first time through. Those next in line already have some tough acts to follow.
The Guardians have revealed their starters for this key spring training stretch, with Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams, and Slade Cecconi set to take the mound.
“Cleveland Guardians starters for the next three spring training games vs the D-Backs, Dodgers and Rangers. Monday – RHP Tanner Bibee, Tuesday – RHP Gavin Williams, Wednesday – RHP Slade Cecconi,” Guardians Prospective posted on X.
Cleveland #Guardians starters for the next three games spring training games vs the D-Backs, Dodgers and Rangers.
Monday – RHP Tanner Bibee
Tuesday – RHP Gavin Williams
Wednesday – RHP Slade Cecconi https://t.co/fz7Ffc8fkg— Guardians Prospective (@CleGuardPro) February 23, 2026
Those three pitchers seem to have the most secure roles for the upcoming regular season. Bibee and Williams led the staff with 31 starts each last year, and Cecconi made 23, ranking just behind Logan Allen’s 29.
Joey Cantillo and Parker Messick, who were two in-season additions to the rotation, are the others competing for spots. They, along with Allen, have already made their spring debuts, with mixed results after three straight wins to open the schedule.
In a split-squad game against the Cincinnati Reds, Allen pitched two scoreless innings with two strikeouts. The same day against the Milwaukee Brewers, Cantillo allowed two runs on three hits over 1.1 innings. Messick followed that against the Athletics with two hitless innings, though he did walk three batters.
The Guardians did use a six-man rotation down the stretch in 2025 as manager Stephen Vogt made that unorthodox move to deal with a taxing schedule. It worked out better than anyone could have hoped, as Cleveland overcame the largest deficit to ever win a division in MLB history.
They are likely to go back to a traditional five-man unit, which would leave someone having to move to the bullpen or go back to the minors. Cantillo entered last season as a reliever, and Messick could return to Triple-A despite his excellent showing during the pennant race.
It is much better to have too many pitchers than too few, and the Guardians can be confident that they have enough competent starters should anyone underperform or get injured.
NEXT: New Projection Says Something Interesting About José Ramírez
