The Cleveland Guardians have signed or acquired some interesting arms for their rotation.
Their biggest achievement was retaining Shane Bieber, who should be back to full health at some point around the start of the summer.
They also traded for Luis L. Ortiz and Slade Cecconi.
With Tanner Bibee and Gavin Williams set to be part of the rotation, and veteran Ben Lively also in the mix, the unit has some upside.
Two wild card arms could make or break the fate of this group, though.
One is Triston McKenzie, who will try to bounce back from a mid-season demotion last year and show he can go back to his 2022 form when he posted a 2.96 ERA.
Many fans have been paying attention to McKenzie’s off-season, knowing his upside.
The other one is Logan Allen.
Allen had a promising debut in 2023, with a 3.81 ERA in 125.1 frames.
He struggled mightily last year, though, and saw his ERA balloon to 5.73.
He did make 20 starts for the Guardians and remains in the organization.
Team insider Paul Hoynes was asked about him and had this to say:
“I think the Guardians saw a glimpse of how good McKenzie can be in 2022 when he went 11-11 with a 2.96 ERA in 191 1/3 innings. Allen has not given Cleveland that kind of season yet, although he did win eight games last year. Still, they’re both going to get a chance to win a job in the rotation this spring. The Guardians need them,” he said.
In theory, all those arms will get a chance to win a spot in the rotation.
Some of them are locks, like Bibee, Williams, and Ortiz (Bieber won’t be ready for the start of the year).
The others will vie for those last couple of spots.
Allen made it through last season healthy, and there have been no reports of injury in the offseason.
If he can make the necessary adjustments, he could still fight for a rotation spot and get his career back on track.
NEXT: Guardians Will Rely On Young Righty To Carry The Rotation In First Half
