The 2026 MLB Postseason will start next week. Even though the Cleveland Guardians have already sealed their ticket, they are still playing for their third straight division crown.
That’s where the focus of the Guardians is at the moment, but saying that they aren’t thinking about October already would be a lie. However, before making any concrete plans about the next phase, Cleveland needs to know whether they will play the Wild Card round of the Division Series.
For now, they do know one thing: Parker Messick will be a key arm in the postseason for them. In a piece discussing playoff intel, bold predictions, and other interesting items, ESPN named the southpaw as one of the under-the-radar players with industry buzz.
“In an era when the average fastball is 94.6 mph and pitchers throw it around 30% of the time, Cleveland left-hander Parker Messick and Milwaukee right-hander Logan Henderson are anomalies. Messick, 25, is a favorite of scouts. He throws a four-seamer that averages 94 mph more than 40% of the time, and despite the relative lack of velocity, it’s been a banger of a pitch, the third-most-valuable heater in MLB behind Jacob Misiorowski’s and Cam Schlittler’s,” Passan wrote.
Messick has ridden his 94 mph fastball to a 2.55 ERA in 183.1 innings this year. He has been so good that he is an AL Rookie of the Year and AL Cy Young candidate.
The secret behind Messick’s fastball dominance is the pitch’s relationship with another elite offering, his changeup, and other factors such as extension, carry, and command. It may not be incredibly fast, but the four-seamer is extremely difficult to hit because Messick maximizes its impact masterfully.
Imagine a fastball with mediocre velocity ranking as the third-most valuable in the big leagues anyway, competing with two guys who can routinely touch triple digits. It’s crazy, right? Credit to Messick himself, the Guardians’ pitching minds, and the coaches for keeping him competitive and focused all year.
Messick is competing neck and neck with Kevin McGonigle for the AL ROY Award, and while he looks well behind Schlittler and Dylan Cease for the AL Cy Young at this point, he should be among the finalists. He has been that good.
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