The Cleveland Guardians had arguably the best bullpen in baseball last season.
They left no reason to believe that 2025’s bullpen will be much different, as the core of that unit will all be returning for the upcoming season and beyond.
One newcomer recently shared what he learned after joining that bullpen and shed some light on how healthy the organization is at the moment.
Andrew Walters made his debut in September of last season at 23 years old and surrendered no earned runs and just one hit in his 8.2 innings of work, which he largely attributed to the foundation he was joining during an appearance on MLB Network Radio, saying that after he received the call, “I just realized that the culture in there was business, those boys know how to get things done.”
Walters’ impressive debut earned him a spot on the postseason roster, where he gave up one run in three innings over four appearances, and he likely earned himself a bigger role in 2025.
Cleveland’s bullpen is loaded once again with Emmanuel Clase resuming his closer duties with plenty of help alongside him from Cade Smith, Tim Herrin, Pedro Avila, Hunter Gaddis, and Walters, who will likely slide into the role left behind from Nick Sandlin’s departure.
Sandlin was shipped to the Pittsburgh Pirates as part of a deal to acquire 25-year-old righty Luis Ortiz, who should slot right into the team’s rotation.
Sandlin had a strong 3.27 ERA over 209 appearances out of this bullpen over the past four years, so Walters will have every opportunity to prove that this culture is as strong as he says it is and step right into a prominent role late in games.
NEXT: Analyst Predicts Guardians' Opening Day Rotation
