The Cleveland Guardians, with a 34-30 record, are still in possession of one of the American League’s Wild Card spots if the season ended today.
Of course, this is just a hypothetical exercise to see where they are at the moment because we aren’t even at the season’s midpoint yet.
Cleveland has managed to be competitive so far without having that workhorse in their rotation who is capable of pitching seven or eight frames in a given start.
In fact, we have seen abbreviated outings from Guardians starters very often this year.
However, in the series against the Houston Astros this past weekend, all the starters went at least six innings.
Not all those long starts translated to wins, but it’s certainly a good development for the health and freshness of the bullpen.
With this in mind, Cleveland sports analyst Bruce Drennan urged the Guards’ rotation to keep offering some length.
“We need our starters to go deeper into the games,” Drennan said in his show.
Bruce and Ryan discuss the #Guardians Starting Pitchers and how they need to go deeper into games to help out the bullpen. #GuardsBall
"We need our starters to go deeper into the games."
-Bruce pic.twitter.com/D1fdJvH9Bs
— Bruce Drennan Show (@Bruce_Drennan) June 9, 2025
If the starters are able to consistently contribute six or seven innings, the bullpen will be fresh and well-rested.
Instead, every time a Cleveland starter struggles and can’t get out of the third inning, for example, he forces the relief corps to cover five or six frames and puts the offense in a hole, too.
This weekend, Gavin Williams, Logan Allen, and Tanner Bibee were all able to offer manager Stephen Vogt and the bullpen some quality innings.
Now, the goal should be for them and the rest of the starters to do it more consistently.
That might be the key for Cleveland’s bullpen to reach or approach last year’s heights.
NEXT: Stephen Vogt Gives Discouraging Update On 2 Guardians Players
