The Guardians head into Minnesota this weekend with a clear pitching roadmap for the first two games of a three-game set, and the pressure is on as they try to stay in the thick of the AL wild-card race.
Cleveland is coming off a series loss to the Baltimore Orioles, dropping two of three, but the bigger picture is still very much alive. The Guardians are 74-73 and just 1.5 games behind first place in the AL Central, which makes every start in this trip matter.
Friday’s opener will send left-hander Parker Messick to the mound against Minnesota’s Taj Bradley. Messick is coming off one of his best outings of the year, tossing six innings against the Detroit Tigers and allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out 12.
He enters the matchup with a 2.53 ERA over 28 starts. Bradley will counter with a 3.95 ERA across 28 starts.
Saturday’s game is not officially set yet on Cleveland’s side, but Gavin Williams is expected to get the ball. Williams has made 29 starts this season and carries a 3.78 ERA.
He also impressed in his last outing against the Tigers, working six innings and giving up two runs while striking out 11. Minnesota is likely to go with Bailey Ober, who has posted a 4.28 ERA in 22 starts.
Sunday’s finale also has an unannounced starter for Cleveland, though Joey Cantillo is the expected choice. Cantillo has worked 30 starts this season and owns a 4.00 ERA.
His last trip to the mound was rougher, though, as he gave up four runs in 2.1 innings against the Orioles. Minnesota has not named a starter for that game yet.
The Twins enter the series at 69-77, outside the playoff picture, but Cleveland knows better than to treat this as a soft landing. Minnesota has been better than expected and has enough pitching to make life difficult.
Friday’s game is set for 5:10 p.m. PT/8:10 p.m. ET at Target Field and will air on Guardians.TV, Twins.TV, and in the MLB app.
In Other News...
Stephen Vogt Is Giving Guardians Fans One Less Thing To Worry About
Stephen Vogt has quickly given Guardians fans a stabilizing presence in the dugout, and a recent Bleacher Report analysis backed up what has been easy to see from the outside. Even amid the ups and downs of the season, Vogt has drawn praise for the way he has handled a roster that continues to ask a lot of him, especially on the pitching side, while keeping Cleveland in the postseason conversation.
For a fan base that has already had enough to monitor on the field, the manager situation is not one of the concerns. Industry opinion has settled in on Vogt as one of the safest bets in the game when it comes to job security, and that matters for a club trying to keep its footing in a tight race. The bigger question now is whether that stability can help the Guardians turn a solid year into something more. [Read more 🡒]
Tanner Bibee Is Creating An October Decision Guardians Fans Didn't Expect
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That is a little different from where Bibees stock seemed to be when he first emerged as a possible ace. His recent regression, marked by a higher ERA and more home runs allowed, has made the conversation more complicated than many expected. But in a playoff race, reliability matters, and Bibees experience could keep him in the rotation even as Cleveland weighs a crowded group of healthy arms. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians Bullpen Decision Puts Stephen Vogt In A Late-Season Spot
The Guardians made another late-season bullpen tweak, optioning Franco Aleman to Triple-A Columbus and bringing Conor Brogdon back to the major league roster. It is the kind of roster move teams make when every inning starts to matter a little more, especially when recent performances have forced a hard look at who can be trusted in leverage spots. Aleman had been struggling, and the club decided it needed a different look as the schedule tightens.
Brogdon gives Cleveland a familiar option, since he has major league experience and has already moved between Columbus and Cleveland this season. For Stephen Vogt, the decision adds another layer to a bullpen that is being managed carefully with critical games ahead, and it leaves the Guardians continuing to sort out which arms can steady the back end when the margin for error gets thin. [Read more 🡒]