On Friday, the Cleveland Guardians reached the bottom of the sixth up 3-2 against the Houston Astros and wound up losing 9-3. The bullpen had a rough night, for lack of a better word.
The Guardians used four relievers after starter Tanner Bibee, and three of them were charged with earned runs. The other, Shawn Armstrong, couldn’t prevent inherited runs from scoring.
Cleveland’s bullpen is usually solid, so the natural reaction is to chalk up Friday’s performance as an off night. Matt Festa, however, has become a liability.
On Friday, he allowed three hits (including a homer) and one run while only getting two outs. He entered the game with a one-run lead and two men on base, and conceded a three-run bomb to the first batter he faced, Jose Altuve.
The right-hander has given the Guardians a solid 31 innings this year, but he boasts a rather mediocre 4.35 ERA and a 4.65 FIP. Many fans and even members of the media believe that a specific Triple-A right-hander could do a much better job.
Reminder that Franco Aleman is putting up these numbers in Triple-A and the Guardians continue to let Matt Festa lose them games.
Just infuriating stuff. pic.twitter.com/8mwEmeVaKD
— Jose (@GuardsBurner_) June 20, 2026
Festa is not a disaster as some say he is. However, when a team has an in-house solution that could provide much better numbers and performance, logic indicates that they should at least explore the possibility of switching.
This option is none other than Franco Aleman. The soon-to-be-26 right-hander already had a brief MLB stint this year in which he posted a 3.38 ERA in 2.2 innings, but his Triple-A stats are mind-blowing and suggest that he deserves another chance.
He is sporting an incredible 0.39 ERA in 23 innings, with 33 strikeouts and just seven walks. Aleman has youth, upside, a big fastball, and a wipeout slider, weapons that give him a better floor than Festa and a significantly higher ceiling, too.
The Guardians definitely respect their veterans, and Festa is one of them. However, if they really care about the well-being of the team and putting the best possible roster on the field, calling up Aleman is the wisest choice they can make.
He can start in a low-leverage role and work his way up to the late innings if he lets his talent do the talking. There could be some walks, yes, but also lots of strikeouts.
NEXT: Analyst Names One Guardians Prospect Who Has Failed To Meet Expectations
