Offseason addition Colin Holderman has been a pleasant surprise for the Cleveland Guardians this year. He came over with little to no expectations after posting a 7.01 ERA in 25.2 innings with the Pittsburgh Pirates last year, and he has achieved some amazing things in the back of manager Stephen Vogt’s bullpen.
For the season, Holderman boasts an excellent 2.42 ERA in 48.1 innings, with 17 walks and 46 strikeouts. That’s 2.71 punchouts for every walk he has issued, which is a solid number for a high-leverage reliever.
Holderman, however, has had a harder time going through outings unscathed in recent weeks. It happens sometimes: it’s part of baseball, and hitters continually make adjustments. On Friday, he surrendered a couple of earned runs in the Guardians’ loss.
Analyst Justin Lada wonders if the ‘dog days of summer’ are getting to the talented righty.
“I do kind of wonder if the dog days of August are getting to Colin Holderman some. There hasn’t been a real dip in velo, but control has really taken a dive. 12 K% and 10 BB% in the 2nd half. That is not an ideal ratio. Overall good, but maybe some things to tweak,” he said.
I do kind of wonder if the dog days of August is getting to Colin Holderman some. There hasn't been a real dip in velo, but control has really taken a dive. 12 K% and 10 BB% in the 2nd half.
That is not an ideal ratio.
Overall good but maybe some things to tweak. Not sure.
— Justin L. (jlbaseball on bluesky) (@JL_Baseball) August 15, 2026
Again, Holderman’s overall season numbers are still amazing. He is still a valued and trusted member of the bullpen. However, perhaps he’s getting tired, and he doesn’t have the same control he had in the first half. Truth be told, he has been overworked for a while, as Vogt didn’t always have many reliable alternatives in his bullpen.
If we zoom in and analyze Holderman’s stats since July 18, we see that he has a 4.15 ERA and a 4.54 FIP, or Fielding Independent Pitching. Neither figure is extraordinarily bad, but they pale in comparison with his numbers before the break.
Also, since July 18, he has six walks and just seven strikeouts in 13 innings. It’s like his ability to consistently strike people out disappeared and his control eroded at the same time.
Perhaps a couple of days off would be of great help. We don’t know if Vogt and the Guardians can afford to do that at this point, though.
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