Cleveland Guardians starter Joey Cantillo has had a decent season to this point. He boasts a 4.00 ERA in 144 innings, with 154 strikeouts. His fastball-changeup combo has been lethal at times.
However, he hasn’t been pitching well for a while now. The left-hander is sporting a mediocre 5.02 ERA in 43 second-half innings, which is less than ideal with a postseason spot on the line.
There are several scenarios that the team should and could evaluate in the upcoming days, ranging from removing Cantillo from the rotation to putting an opener in front of him to solve the first inning or two, given the fact that he has struggled early in his outing in recent games. Manager Stephen Vogt didn’t commit to anything in his latest encounter with the press, leaving all options on the table regarding the southpaw.
“I think not just with Joey [Cantillo], we’re always talking about the best way to go navigate a game. We’re talking about a lot of different scenarios with the rotation, and we don’t know what we’re going to do coming out of the off day (Thursday) yet,” Vogt said. “There’s a lot of factors to talk through, and we’re always looking at what’s the best possibility for us to win the game.”
Ben Lively is rehabbing in Triple-A and seems very close to game action. Remember, this is a guy who put up ERA finishes below 4.00 in each of the 2024 and 2025 campaigns, so he could be an option to replace Cantillo if the team goes that route. Slade Cecconi and Logan Allen could also be alternatives.
Of course, sticking with the struggling lefty is also an option, whether it is with an opener or after making some adjustments. He remains a highly talented hurler, and his overall body of work this year hasn’t been bad at all, but the team should be mindful of his second-half struggles, especially in the control and command departments.
The Guardians can’t afford to keep sending a guy who can’t guarantee five solid innings. In his latest outing, Cantillo pitched just 2.1 frames, putting a lot of stress and pressure on the entire bullpen.
Time will tell which way the Guardians decide to go, but Cantillo knows that he will need to deliver if presented with another chance.
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