The Cleveland Guardians’ bullpen hasn’t been very impressive in recent days. Connor Brogdon, with a 5.28 ERA, and Hunter Gaddis, with a 9.00 ERA, have been particularly ineffective. Yes, Cade Smith is back to his best, but the unit still needs help.
The organization needed to make a move to ensure it gave manager Stephen Vogt the right tools to protect late leads. Starting pitchers, after all, can’t be asked to take games into the seventh or eighth inning every time they pitch.
To alleviate some of their concerns, the Guardians have decided to promote one of their most exciting relief pitching prospects: Franco Aleman.
“Sources: The Cleveland Guardians are promoting Cuban right-hander pitcher Franco Aleman to MLB. Aleman, 26, has not allowed a run this season in Triple-A Columbus, with 12 innings pitched and 18 strikeouts. His fastball velocity ranges between 95–99 mph,” MLB reporter Francys Romero said.
Sources: The Cleveland Guardians are promoting Cuban right-hander pitcher Franco Aleman to MLB.
Aleman, 26, has not allowed a run this season in Triple-A Columbus, with 12 innings pitched and 18 strikeouts.
His fastball velocity ranges between 95–99 mph.
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) May 8, 2026
Aleman has long been considered one of the most promising prospects in the organization, but was held back by control issues and injuries before the 2026 campaign. This year, however, he appears to have conquered all his demons.
In addition to the 12 scoreless innings so far in Columbus, Aleman has lowered his BB/9 (walks per nine innings) to just 3.00, a more than manageable figure. For reference, it was 5.89 last year in 36.2 innings at the same level: almost twice as high as it currently is.
Aleman’s fastball, as Romero says, is usually in the mid-to-high 90s. He can approach the triple digits if the situation calls for it. To complement the heater, he also has a mid-80s slider that he uses as a put-away pitch, earning lots of strikeouts with it.
The improvement he has shown in comparison to last season has been remarkable. In 2025, Aleman finished with a 7.85 ERA. It’s only 12 innings, sure, but he is perfect this year, and that has definitely caught the eye of the Guardians’ decision-makers, especially during times of turbulence with their relief corps.
Aleman figures to be an asset against right-handers immediately upon arrival. His ability to deal with lefties will determine his ceiling at the highest level, but we are talking about a high-ceiling relief pitching prospect ready to help now and help change the outlook of the Guardians’ bullpen.
NEXT: Guardians Land Intriguing OF Prospect In Latest Mock Draft
