Cleveland Guardians pitcher Daniel Espino was one of baseball’s best prospects from the moment he was drafted in 2019. He essentially toyed with minor league hitters through the beginning of the 2022 campaign, when his shoulder issues began.
He was able to pitch only 18.1 innings that season. Then, after having multiple surgeries and enduring other injuries, most of them to his shoulder, he finally returned to the minors near the end of the 2025 campaign.
The Guardians turned him into a reliever this year, and he alternated good and bad outings in Triple-A before being called up to the majors on June 12. His brief time as a major leaguer is a reminder that he may not be ready, though.
Some might say making that statement feels premature after he has pitched just 2.1 innings for Cleveland, with an 11.57 ERA. However, we also have to consider his 5.30 ERA in 18.2 frames for Columbus.
The fact that he might not be ready to be a successful, consistent MLB reliever is not a knock on Espino. Far from it. In fact, watching him pitch in the majors is remarkable considering everything he had to go through.
The 2026 campaign was supposed to be a developmental one for him, or at least that was the idea. But the Guardians have suffered several injuries to their bullpen, and they probably felt the need to add an impactful, high-strikeout arm like Espino’s.
The talented right-hander is still learning the intricacies of pitching in a different role, a few times a week, for 1-2 innings at a time. Asking him to be a shutdown reliever when he had the grand total of 37.2 innings above High-A at the moment of getting the call to MLB might have been unfair.
Espino is still on the MLB roster and will probably get more chances in the coming days. It’s important to point out, however, that he has allowed three runs, walked two, and surrendered four hits while recording just seven outs.
Yes, the sample size is tiny, and he does have five strikeouts that prove how dominant he can be. But it’s becoming clear that Espino could definitely use a few more weeks in Triple-A.
He still has an incredibly bright future ahead of him, and that alone is worth celebrating.
NEXT: Guardians Starter Has Quietly Turned His Season Around
