BOSTON - The Guardians know Joey Cantillo is taking the mound Thursday. What they still haven’t settled is whether he’ll be the starter or come in behind an opener.
“It will be Joey Cantillo’s day to pitch, but we’re just not sure what we’re going to do,” manager Stephen Vogt said.
Vogt said the team wants to see how the first two games of the three-game set against Boston unfold before making the final call on Cantillo’s role. For now, the only certainty is that the left-hander is pitching Thursday.
That uncertainty comes with the Guardians still very much in the thick of the division race. They entered the series up one game on the White Sox in the AL Central. If Cleveland finishes with a better record than Chicago, it would earn a bye in the wild card round as the second seed.
Chicago, though, owns the tiebreaker. If the teams finish level, the division title goes to the White Sox.
Cleveland’s magic number to clinch the division is six, while its magic number to lock up a postseason berth is three. A playoff spot could be clinched as soon as Wednesday.
Cantillo’s recent move to the bullpen has changed the look of his outings, and the results have been sharp. After making 30 straight starts, he has worked in relief in his last two appearances, with rookie Daniel Espino serving as the opener both times.
The shift came after Cantillo stopped throwing strikes. Since then, his command and control have come back around.
In those two relief outings, he hasn’t allowed a run over 10 innings. He threw four scoreless innings Sept. 12 in a 4-3 loss to the Twins, then followed with six scoreless innings Sept. 18 in a 5-3 win over the A’s.
Over that 10-inning stretch, Cantillo struck out 13, walked two and gave up three hits.
“The biggest difference is that you don’t have as much time to get ready,” Cantillo said, pointing to the 30 to 40 pitches a starter typically throws in the bullpen before taking the mound in the first inning.
Vogt said that reduced runway can actually help some pitchers. A starter has four or five days to dwell on a start, while a reliever is waiting for the bullpen phone and has less time to overthink things.
There had been some talk after the Guardians’ three-game sweep of the A’s on Sunday that Tanner Bibee might get the Thursday assignment instead of Cantillo, but that is no longer in play.
Elsewhere on the roster front, Corey Kluber is expected back next season as a special assistant in the Guardians’ baseball operations department, a job he will hold for a third year. Kluber, who won two Cy Young awards with Cleveland, was in uniform at Fenway Park on Tuesday.
“Corey has done a great job,” said Chris Antonetti, president of baseball operations.
Kluber works with Guardians pitchers throughout the organization, from the minors to the big leagues.
The Guardians also have some extra arms nearby as they prepare for the final days of the regular season. Right-hander Shawn Armstrong, who has been sidelined with a left calf injury, is eligible to come off the injured list on Wednesday.
“We’re not sure what we’re going to do,” said Vogt, “but the next time he throws it will be with us. We just don’t know the exact day we’ll activate him.”
Amstrong, who is with the team in Boston, hasn’t pitched for Cleveland since July 24. Colin Holderman, who is dealing with a right wrist injury, is also with the club.
With the minor league season over, the Guardians are keeping a group of players in Columbus for now so they have options if an injury pops up before Sunday’s regular-season finale. That group can also help if the team reaches the postseason.
Non-roster players training in Columbus include Kody Huff, Carlos Hernandez, Ben Lively, Milan Tolentino, Justin Campbell and Steven Perez.
One prospect won’t be part of that group. Ralphy Velazquez is starting his offseason early after dealing with quad and hamstring issues late in the year. The Guardians decided it was best to shut him down.
Velazquez hit .290 with 29 homers, 93 RBI and a .927 OPS in 121 games between Double-A Akron and Columbus.
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