Stats Show How Cade Smith Dominated This Past Season

The Cleveland Guardians made it to the postseason despite ongoing concerns about their bullpen depth in late July. Days before the trade deadline, Major League Baseball suspended closer Emmanuel Clase in connection with a gambling investigation.

The decision forced Cleveland to move forward without their primary closer and without any form of roster compensation. Cade Smith took over the role after an initial stretch of inconsistency and has since emerged as the likely full-time closer heading into next season.

His performance has been backed by advanced metrics that place him among the best relievers in baseball over the past two seasons.

Shortly after the announcement, Guardians Prospective highlighted that Smith had posted the highest fWAR among all MLB relievers for the second consecutive year. Smith finished the 2025 season with a 2.7 fWAR, narrowly edging Chapman’s 2.6 mark. He recorded the same 2.7 fWAR in 2024, finishing just ahead of Griffin Jax in that category.

Cleveland #Guardians closer Cade Smith finished with the highest f(WAR) amongst all MLB relievers for the 2nd straight season.

2025
Cade Smith 2.7
Aroldis Chapman 2.6

2024
Cade Smith 2.7
Griffin Jax 2.6

2024-25 combined
Cade Smith 5.4
Mason Miller 4.4 https://t.co/NOCnqUTMNT

— Guardians Prospective (@CleGuardPro) November 14, 2025

When combining both seasons, Smith led all relievers with a 5.4 fWAR total while Mason Miller ranks second at 4.4. Those numbers reflect sustained excellence across multiple high-leverage situations over two full campaigns.

Smith carried a 3.00 ERA through 72 innings this past season. His performance improved after taking over as the primary closer, posting a 2.96 ERA with 13 saves across 27 1/3 innings in that role.

He generated 1.1 fWAR during that period, the highest mark among all relievers since assuming closing duties.

Cleveland’s bullpen ranked second in ERA since Clase’s suspension. Smith’s work anchoring the ninth inning had been central to that stability.

Combined with a rotation that delivered a near-historic run, the Guardians positioned themselves firmly in the postseason race largely due to Smith’s contributions.