Guardians lose valuable reliever again in latest roster shuffle (but will he return?)

Yesterday, Kolby Allard’s current time on the Guardians’ big league roster came to an end after the team designated him for assignment as the corresponding move for Hunter Gaddis’ activation from the injured list. 

The move didn’t come as a huge surprise given Allard was coming off an outing where he allowed five runs in three innings in a blowout loss to the Braves. 

But that doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a move of consequence. Even though Allard’s early-season results have left a lot to be desired, he’s a solid longman option in the bullpen and is coming off a season where he had a 2.63 ERA and was one of the most valuable pitchers on the roster. 

But now he’s headed back to the waiver wire. 

The Guardians could end up regretting DFA'ing Kolby Allard

It may be hard to believe given how well Allard pitched last season, but this is the third time the Guardians have cut him loose in the past 12 months. 

The first instance came last July when he got caught in the crossfire after Luis Ortiz was placed on paid leave. The Guardians needed to free up a spot to add Joey Cantillo to the roster, so they DFA’d Allard, who had thrown three scoreless innings the day prior. 

He went unclaimed on waivers and quickly re-signed with the Guardians on a minor league contract. They added him to their big league roster not long after. 

While pitched well in the second half, the Guardians still decided to outright Allard off their roster off the season. 

He signed yet another minor league contract with the Guardians in the offseason, and was added to the big league roster less than a week into the season.

But that tenure on the roster didn’t end up leading to much success, as he had a 10.38 ERA in 8 2/3 innings (four appearances). He showed off his length by going multiple innings in three of four of those appearances, but he surrendered far too much hard contact. 

That was extremely evident in his outing against the Braves on Sunday when he allowed eight batted balls with an exit velocity of 96+ miles per hour. 

The Guardians are in the midst of playing 13 games in a row, so Allard eating three innings in a blowout was a huge help to the team’s bullpen… and his reward for that was being designated for assignment for a fresh arm. 

Such is life when you’re the 26th man on a MLB roster. 

All that sets up another interesting juncture between Allard and the Guardians. While the Guardians will likely have interest in bringing him back as a depth arm, Allard would also have a chance to sign with another interested team, should he choose. 

Every MLB team has to make plenty of roster moves that come back to bite them because of a roster crunch. The Guardians’ decision to DFA Allard could end up becoming one of those.

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