Guardians 2024 spring training battles: The race for the last two spots in the bullpen
The Guardians' 2024 bullpen has six spots locked up, barring something unforeseen. That leaves two spots up for grabs when it comes to the Opening Day roster, with a group of at least six pitchers all vying for those spots.
Emmanuel Clase, Scott Barlow (acquired over the offseason in a trade), Sam Hentges (the lone lefty thus far), Trevor Stephan, Nick Sandlin and Eli Morgan should all have their spots in the Opening Day bullpen secure.
The Guardians have position battles ongoing at shortstop and in center field. While the rotation has a rock-solid top five, the bullpen has a couple of spots yet to be named.
Here's a look at the top contenders to round out the bullpen (assuming no further issues pop up with the not-so-good Nike uniforms this spring).
James Karinchak must show he's ready to join Guardians' 2024 Opening Day bullpen
If James Karinchak can show he's throwing well by the end of spring training, he should have the seventh spot. But as tantalizing as his stuff can be when he's at his best, that remains a big if.
Karinchak has also been dealing with shoulder fatigue at the beginning of spring camp, which might put him behind the others and take away some of his chance to show the team he can't be left off the Opening Day roster.
Karinchak finished last season with a 3.23 ERA, but it was a roller coaster-type experience. He struck out 52 batters in 39 innings, but he also walked 28.
He's been all over the map in his career, from a lock-down setup man in front of Clase to a reliever who simply couldn't find the strike zone at times and needed innings in Triple-A to sort through some issues. He'll always have a high ceiling, but until he can show some reliability his wildly dynamic floor might need to be worked on in Columbus.
Cade Smith, Tim Herrin are outside contenders for a spot in Guardians bullpen this spring training
If Karinchak isn't ready by Opening Day — or if he simply isn't throwing well — that'll further open the door for Cade Smith and/or Tim Herrin.
Smith, 24, was promoted to Triple-A last season and posted a 4.65 ERA 66 strikeouts in 40⅔ innings with Columbus. Smith led the Guardians system in saves the past two seasons. Last year, he had the highest K/9 rate in Cleveland's system at 13.64.
He's already on the 40-man roster and has a good probability of logging some innings in the majors this season, especially if he's missing that many bats. If he has a strong spring, he could break camp with the team.
Herrin made his major league debut in 2023 with mixed results. He finished with a 5.53 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 27⅔ innings. He has the added bonus of being a lefty, so if he's throwing well the Guardians could add him as a second southpaw to join Hentges. But that element alone won't be enough to secure a roster spot.
Carlos Carrasco, Ben Lively, Xzavion Curry could be options as long relievers in Guardians' 2024 bullpen
The Guardians are thrilled to have "Cookie" back in camp. But as a non-roster invitee at age 37, Carlos Carrasco has his work cut out for him to earn a spot in the Opening Day bullpen. If he doesn't make the roster when the team breaks camp, he could potentially accept an assignment to Triple-A Columbus and bolster the club's starting pitching depth as well.
But unless an injury pops up to one of the top five in the rotation, Carrasco's hope of making the roster by the season opener rests in the bullpen. He worked with Shane Bieber at Driveline this offseason and then even surprised himself with how hard he was throwing this early in camp.
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Ben Lively was signed to a one-year, $750,000 deal for the 2024 season, but that alone won't guarantee him a roster spot. Now 31, Lively spent a few years overseas and last season posted a 5.38 ERA in 88⅔ innings, though a lot of that damage was the result of one horrendous start that went off the rails from the very beginning.
Lively has experience as both a starter and a reliever in his career.
Xzavion Curry had some nice moments in 2023 before finishing with a 4.07 ERA. He struck out 67 and walked 30 in 95 innings. He could remain a starter in Triple-A, as he has minor league options remaining. He very well could also earn one of those last two spots in the bullpen as a multi-inning reliever.
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In several cases, new Guardians manager Stephen Vogt noted the plan with a few pitchers this spring would be to lengthen them out as starters and then, later on in camp, figure out where those roads lead from there when it comes to determining roles. And as pitching coach Carl Willis knows well, starting pitching depth can be a season saver.
"So we end the season, everyone kind of has five guys in mind that we feel would be in our rotation," Willis said. "So we welcome some competition in that situation. I think we realize that it's very seldom that you play 162 games with the same five starters that you break camp with, so we're going to need more than that."
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Threads at @ByRyanLewis.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians spring training bullpen battle features Carrasco, Karinchak
