Joey Cantillo walked out of the home opener at Progressive Field with a win and something that might be worth more than either of those — a lesson in what it means to trust your stuff even when your stuff isn’t cooperating.
The left-hander was honest about what he was dealing with heading into Friday’s start against the Cubs. His changeup hadn’t felt right in Seattle the week before. It wasn’t breaking the way it should.
“That was definitely a focal point,” Cantillo said. “Like, ‘Hey, let’s throw it regardless of how the first couple end up. It’s a pitch we’ve got to throw. It doesn’t matter.’ … You’ve got to keep throwing it and make the adjustment with it.”
That belief showed up in the results.
Cantillo went 5 1/3 innings in front of a packed house at Progressive Field, striking out six and allowing just one earned run. The lone mistake came on a miscommunication between Gabriel Arias and José Ramírez on a pop fly that set up an RBI double by Miguel Amaya — not exactly something that belongs on Cantillo’s stat line. Otherwise, he was in control from start to finish, retiring eight consecutive hitters at one point and keeping the Cubs off balance all day.
The win also extended a remarkable streak. Cantillo has now allowed two earned runs or fewer in nine straight starts, the longest such run by a Cleveland pitcher since Corey Kluber rattled off 13 in a row between August 2017 and April 2018. He has also gone without allowing a home run in 11 of his last 15 outings.
Manager Stephen Vogt spoke out about Canitllo’s performance.
“He was outstanding,” Vogt said. “Joey really did a nice job of not getting too deep into counts and he made pitches when he had to. He was getting weak contact. Joey competed and I thought it was without his best stuff. So that’s kind of some growth there from Joey, too. He was very, very good without his best stuff. He gave us a great chance to win.”
Cantillo has pitched in big moments before, including a tough start in New York during the 2024 American League Championship Series. But walking out at Progressive Field for the first time this season, with the crowd and the energy that only a home opener can produce, was something different.
“It was awesome,” he said. “The stadium was electric like we thought it would be… you couldn’t have asked for a better first start at home and I’m happy we got the win.”
“Stadium was electric like we thought. It was awesome. The atmosphere, you couldn’t have asked for a better first start at home.”#Guardians SP Joey Cantillo on getting the win in the home opener over the #Cubs on Friday pic.twitter.com/78kkoIa8Iu
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) April 4, 2026
The Guardians improved to 5-3 in the young season. The offense did its part, but the story belonged to a pitcher who leaned into his weakness, turned it into a strength, and gave Cleveland exactly what it needed in front of its own fans.
NEXT: Stephen Vogt Has Honest Admission About Chase DeLauter
