Guardians starter could be in store for breakout 2026 after strong spring

Slade Cecconi’s first season with the Cleveland Guardians was one of ups and downs. After coming over to Cleveland as part of the return for Josh Naylor, Cecconi didn’t end up making his Guardians debut until the middle of May due to a left oblique strain. 

But it didn’t take long for him to make an impression once he was on the diamond, however, as he threw five solid innings against the Reds in his season debut and posted a 3.64 ERA through the first four starts of his Guardians career. 

Cecconi ended up finishing the year with a 4.30 ERA in 132 innings while primarily working as the Guardians’ No. 3 or 4 starter. While those stats don’t jump off the page, they’re a tangible example of Cecconi’s ability to take the ball every fifth day and go 5+ innings.

And while that was a solid Guardians debut for Cecconi, his results this spring have made it seem like he’s on the verge of an even better showing in 2026. 

Slade Cecconi could be in for a big 2026 with Guardians thanks to pitching adjustments

Cecconi took the mound against the Brewers on Thursday, where he allowed just one hit over four scoreless innings with six strikeouts and one walk. Last year Cecconi recorded 6+ strikeouts in just eight of his 23 starts; it took him all of four spring starts to reach that mark this spring. 

Perhaps the biggest reason for Cecconi’s success this spring has been a revamped slider and tightened cutter. Although he only threw his cutter 2.7% of the time last year, he threw it 34% of the time against the Brewers and was able to generate four whiffs on it. 

Yes, Spring stats should obviously be taken with a grain of salt, but it’s clear that Cecconi is ready to use his arsenal in a different way. 

Cecconi told reporters earlier this spring that his mentality in the offseason was to work on refining the pitches he already knew as opposed to needing to learn new pitches, and it seems like that kind of thinking has been successful so far this spring. 

Last year Cecconi had two starts where he worked his way into the eighth inning (one of which was a no-hitter attempt) along with a start in September where he threw seven shutout innings as the Guardians were chasing down the Tigers for the American League Central title. 

While Tanner Bibee and Gavin Williams are locked into the top two spots in the Guardians' rotation, the three spots behind them are a bit of a question mark.

Joey Cantillo seems to have pitched his way into one of those spots thanks to his strong performance this spring, and Cecconi’s pretty much matched him pitch for pitch. 

Last year Cecconi impressed in Cleveland despite the fact he was still coming into his own as a pitcher. It seems like he finally put it all together in the offseason, which means he could be in store for a big 2026 season.