When discussing the Cleveland Guardians‘ surprisingly decent 2022 season so far, a specific name is often overlooked.
Sure, Jose Ramirez is leading the way.
Sure, Andres Gimenez, Josh Naylor, Steven Kwan, and Triston McKenzie all appear to be breaking out in spectacular fashion.
Yet Emmanuel Clase has been nasty at the back of the bullpen.
In fact, nasty wouldn’t even begin to describe what he does night in and night out.
He has an incredible 1.41 ERA so far in 2022, in 38.1 innings, no less.
He also has just six walks against 41 strikeouts, one of the best BB/K ratios in baseball.
Clase has closed out 19 games for the Guardians, and has a shot at 40 depending on how the team performs in the second half.
One Of MLB’s Best Relievers
You can firmly say, without being mistaken, that Clase has been one of the most consistently reliable pitchers in the major leagues.
That makes him a top candidate to occupy a high-leverage role for his country, the Dominican Republic, in the upcoming World Baseball Classic next spring.
“I’d say Emmanuel Clase will close for the Dominican Republic at the 2023,” MLB insider Jon Morosi tweeted after watching Clase strike out the three hitters he faced to close out the American League’s 3-2 victory against the National League in the All-Star Game.
I'd say Emmanuel Clase will close for the Dominican Republic at the 2023 @WBCBaseball. 👀 @MLBNetwork @CleGuardians
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 20, 2022
He almost threw an “Emmaculate” inning, in fact.
Clase has what it takes to close games for the stacked Dominican Republic next year.
And that’s saying a lot, because they have a strong bullpen: Camilo Doval, Alex Colome, Diego Castillo, Cristian Javier, and Gregory Soto all have high-leverage experience in the big leagues.
Having a pitcher like Clase handling the ninth inning should bring Dominicans some peace of mind.
Leave a Reply