4 Cleveland Guardians who have failed to impress in spring training

2. Triston McKenzie - Starting Pitcher

The state of the Cleveland Guardians' starting rotation after Ace Tanner Bibee leaves something to be desired, which makes the struggles of Triston McKenzie in Arizona a little more frustrating.

In his four appearances this spring, McKenzie has allowed 10 runs on 15 hits and five walks while only striking out eight batters in 11 innings. Three of the hits surrendered by McKenzie have been home runs, a rate (2.45) that is somehow worse than 2024's 2.3 Home Runs Per Nine Innings rate. This is not at all encouraging, and is,in fact, very concerning.

Under usual circumstances, it is best not to look too far into numbers that come from spring training, especially the hitter-friendly Cactus League, but the circumstances for McKenzie are not of the usual variety. McKenzie missed all but four starts in 2023, and his 2024 season saw him get sent down to the minors in late June and would not return to their major league roster.

McKenzie should make the Guardians' Opening Day roster in some capacity, but him remaining a part of Cleveland's major league pitching staff for the entire season is far from a guarantee. It is going to come down to whether or not McKenzie can better resemble the pitcher he was during his first three seasons, as a continuation of what was seen in 2023 and 2024 could very well result in his time in Cleveland coming to an end.