The 2026 MLB season is over, and a long and uncertain offseason has begun, but the pain of the Cleveland Guardians falling just shy of reaching the World Series again is still very real. It’s going to take a while for this wound to heal, but this team gave the fans plenty of reason to believe that this championship drought could end soon.
The offense showed glimpses of greatness, but the bats ultimately went cold again at the worst possible time. Hopefully the front office realizes the importance of continuing to add to this lineup, but one thing they can hang their hats on is the fact that the pitching staff held up their end of the bargain once again.
Dan Plesac recently appeared on MLB Network and shared the ten pitchers he believes made the biggest impact in the postseason. Two Guardians made his list as Cade Smith and Gavin Williams slotted in at No. 6 and No. 7.
“1. Aaron Ashby 2. Michael King 3. Bryan Baker 4. Tyler Mahle 5. Robert Gasser 6. Cade Smith 7. Gavin Williams 8. Jesús Luzardo 9. Jacob Misiorowski 10. Cam Schlittler,” Plesac said.
.@Plesac19 shares his Top 10 pitchers based on Postseason impact:
1. Aaron Ashby
2. Michael King
3. Bryan Baker
4. Tyler Mahle
5. Robert Gasser
6. Cade Smith
7. Gavin Williams
8. Jesús Luzardo
9. Jacob Misiorowski
10. Cam Schlittler pic.twitter.com/YKU27RktWI— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) November 7, 2026
Guardians fans would definitely rather have some hardware, but it’s nice to get a little love even though they fell short. These are two of the anchors of Cleveland’s staff and the two of them should have a lot more opportunities to get this team over the hump in October.
Williams was dominant in all four of his postseason appearances and looks like someone who is ready to take that next step into Cy Young contention in 2027. He had a 2.16 ERA in 16.2 innings with an absurd 33 strikeouts. Smith continued his run of postseason dominance as well and had a 2.38 ERA in 11.1 innings over nine appearances. He now has a 2.55 ERA and 0.61 WHIP in 21 appearances over the past three postseasons.
Nobody was approaching Aaron Ashby’s level this postseason, but Williams and Smith did everything they could to get the Guardians to the Fall Classic. They’ll need a little more help in 2027 to get this team to the promised land, and hopefully that help can come from the bats.
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