Guardians overlooked bullpen ace could be huge factor in 2026 rotation

Last season Kolby Allard came out of nowhere to help save the Guardians’ bullpen. After signing with the Guardians as a minor league free agent, Allard was called up at the end of April and ended up pitching in every role imaginable. 

From working in long relief to shifting to a one-inning weapon and even picking up the occasional spot start, Allard did everything the Guardians asked of him in 2025. 

And, after being non-tendered following last season, the Guardians reunited with Allard in the offseason on a minor league deal that included an invite to big league spring training. 

And although Allard started the spring working as a relief option, the Guardians recently started stretching him out as a starter thanks in large part to the team’s lack of starting pitching depth. 

That decision is the first move in what could be another busy season for Allard. 

Kolby Allard could pitch in a variety of roles for the Guardians in 2026 

It’s hard to overstate just how much Allard saved the Guardians last season. While Allard’s counting stats were the best of his career (2.63 ERA in 65 innings), his ability to pitch in any role ended up being more important than anyone could have anticipated. 

Allard opened his time with the Guardians with six innings of relief (which made sense given that he opened his career as a starter) before working as both a single-inning weapon and long man in his first full month with Cleveland.

The Guardians designated him for assignment in July thanks in large part to Luis Ortiz’s suspension, but he ended up reuniting with the Guardians less than a week later and spent the rest of the season on Cleveland’s roster. 

He was at his best as the season went on, as he finished the year by tossing 10 1/3 scoreless innings across his final five appearances with nine strikeouts. The biggest of those strikeouts came on Sept. 18 when he struck out Tigers All-Star Riley Greene in his first pitching appearance in 11 days. 

As mentioned above, Allard started his career as a starter, though he has a 5.73 ERA in 44 career starts. He’s much more valuable as a bullpen option, but the Guardians don’t have much of a choice in his role thanks to Austin Peterson’s injury.

Peterson, who stood out as an obvious starting option for Triple-A Columbus, is going to be out 6 to 8 weeks thanks to a triceps strain, which leaves a clear hole in Columbus’ rotation. 

While there’s always the chance Allard could end up elsewhere either by a trade or asking for his release, it seems like he’s destined to start the season in Columbus. 

Although that still could have happened even if he stayed in the bullpen, it would have been tough for him to make the Opening Day roster due to the abundance of options in Cleveland’s relief picture.  

Last year Allard came out of nowhere to win over Cleveland’s heart. There’s a chance that could happen again this season — regardless of where he begins the season.