Guardians surprisingly demote 2024 bullpen cornerstone

Last year, Tim Herrin held down the Guardians’ bullpen as the team’s top high-leverage left-handed arm. 

It’s been a bit of a different story this year, and that change became extremely evident on Wednesday when the Guardians announced they were sending him to Triple-A and recalling veteran Kolby Allard to take his place.

Guardians surprisingly demote Tim Herrin

Allard’s reappointment to the Guardians’ roster closes out what’s been a whirlwind week for him. He was designated for assignment last week when the team needed a fresh arm after Luis Ortiz was suspended.

After existing in DFA purgatory for a week, Allard elected free agency earlier today before surprisingly re-signing with the Guardians on a minor league contract that led to his promotion (and Herrin’s demotion). 

While Herrin hasn’t been as good this year as he was last year (3.99 ERA in 29 1/3 innings), it’s still surprising to see him going to Columbus. He’s appeared in the fourth-most games of anyone in the bullpen (37), and is the team’s top left-handed option out of the bullpen.

He ran into a bit of a wall once the weather got warmer (4.67 ERA in 17 1/3 innings in May and June), but had posted a 3.18 ERA across his last seven appearances. 

The most notable difference with him this year has been his command. After only walking 25 batters in 65 2/3 innings last year, he’s already walked 22 batters in a third of the amount of innings. He currently ranks in the 1st percentile in walk rate and the 6th percentile in hard-hit rate. 

It remains to be seen how manager Stephen Vogt will fill his niche on the roster. While Allard is also a left-handed pitcher, he’s worked mostly as a longman this year and likely won’t be a high-leverage option. 

The only other left-handed pitchers on the 26-man roster is Joey Cantillo, who seems to be working out of the rotation until Ortiz’s suspension gets sorted out, and Logan Allen.

Allen’s worked almost exclusively out of the rotation in his career, though he did make one relief appearance against the Tigers earlier this year. 

This could also set up a potential promotion for top prospect Doug Nikhazy, who was initially called up last week when Allard was designated for assignment. The lefty prospect is currently working as a starter in the minors, but has gained some buzz within the organization as a potential bullpen option for the future.

The Guardians could also elect to shift any of those options to the bullpen once Shane Bieber returns to the roster.

Matt Festa could also be due for an increased role now that Herrin's gone. He's already worked in 28 games despite not joining the roster until May and has already pitched four times in July.