Last October, Slade Cecconi was thrust into a spot the Guardians would have preferred never to reach. Their season hung on his Game 3 start in the Wild Card Series against the Tigers, a role that came after a flat Game 1 left Cleveland in a bad place.
Cecconi wasn’t the reason the Guardians lost the deciding game, but his short 2 1/3-inning outing didn’t give them the lift they needed, either.
This time around, the setup looks very different. Cecconi’s job in the postseason, if he even makes the roster, is expected to be nothing like the one he had a year ago. That shift says plenty about how much stronger the Guardians’ pitching situation is now.
Cecconi spent much of this season in the rotation before moving to the bullpen after Cleveland added Foster Griffin. He made two relief appearances in August, then landed on the injured list with an arm injury that appeared tied to the role change. He came back in September and posted a 3.27 ERA over 11 innings in five appearances.
That gave the Guardians a useful long relief option. But the ALDS schedule may leave no room for him. Cleveland would be able to use Parker Messick and Gavin Williams on normal rest in four of the five games, which means the club needs just one more starter to cover the rest.
That likely forces either Tanner Bibee or Foster Griffin out of the rotation and could also knock Cecconi off the postseason roster.
Griffin was brought in at the deadline with the idea that he could become a postseason-impact starter, though his regular season in Cleveland had its share of ups and downs. He did finish strong with his start against the Red Sox.
Bibee’s year followed a similar path. He led baseball with 15 losses, but he ended the regular season with a quality start against the Royals that helped the Guardians secure a playoff berth.
Neither pitcher may be asked to start a decisive Game 5, which could instead go to whoever handled Game 2. Even so, the Guardians could still find themselves depending on Griffin or Bibee to get key outs in their assigned stretch of the series.
In Other News...
Guardians Have A Few Forgotten Names Who Could Crash Clevelands 2027 Plans
The Guardians are heading into the American League Division Series with the kind of roster fans know well, but the organizations long view is shaped by a few names farther down the depth chart. Right-hander Ben Lively has worked his way back from Tommy John surgery and pitched effectively in Triple-A, while Cooper Ingle has added value by moving between catcher and the outfield, giving Cleveland another flexible option to track.
Kahlil Watson is another player worth keeping an eye on as the club maps out its next wave. The young outfielder put together a strong minor league season and has already had a brief taste of the majors, which is enough to keep him in the conversation as Cleveland looks ahead to 2027 and beyond. For a team that has made a habit of finding contributors in unexpected places, these are the kinds of forgotten names that can quickly become part of the picture. [Read more 🡒]
Gavin Williams Just Gave Cleveland A Huge Reason To Believe
Gavin Williams spent the regular season giving Cleveland a front-line arm to lean on, and the numbers backed up what the Guardians saw every fifth day. He led the American League with 248 strikeouts, finished 14-8 with a 3.76 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP over 32 starts, and outpaced both Dylan Cease and Cam Schlittler in the strikeout race.
The encouraging part for Cleveland is that Williams did not fade as the schedule wore on. He sharpened in September, trimming his ERA and missing more bats while the Guardians were fighting for a playoff push, which only added to the sense that he was settling into the role they had been waiting for. For a club that has spent a lot of time searching for reliable rotation anchors, Williams just made the long view a little easier to picture. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians Trade Deadline Looks Smarter As October Reality Hits Phillies
As Cleveland waits to make its postseason roster official, the early read on the clubs deadline work is encouraging. Nathaniel Lowe, Jo Adell and Foster Griffin are all expected to be included, giving the Guardians a chance to lean on the reinforcements they added when the market opened up.
Philadelphia offered a sharper contrast by unveiling its National League Wild Card Series roster without any of its deadline pickups, Caleb Kilian, Brooks Raley and Luis Arraez. Injuries have kept Kilian and Arraez out, while Raley was left off after a difficult stretch, a reminder that deadline deals can look good in July and much different by October. [Read more 🡒]