Guardians wisely reunite with injured fan favorite pitcher on no-risk deal

Fear not, Guardians fans. Ben Lively is back. 

After lingering in free agency all offseason due to the Tommy John surgery he underwent last season, The Athletic’s Zack Meisel reported on Thursday that Lively was in camp with the Guardians and had agreed to a two-year, minor league deal.

Although Lively won’t help the Guardians in 2026 as he recovers from last year’s Tommy John surgery, his contract is a clear win for both sides since it provides Lively with a familiar organization for his rehab while also adding to Cleveland’s long-term pitching depth. 

Guardians reunite with Ben Lively on deal that will allow him to rehab his Tommy John surgery 

Lively’s had quite a journey in Cleveland over the past two-plus years. After initially joining the Guardians in December 2023 on a cheap $750,000 deal, Lively put together a career year in 2024 while also serving as a savior in the Guardians’ injury plagued rotation. 

He posted a 3.81 ERA in 151 innings that season and finished second on the team in starts (29), which led to him entering 2025 as a lock for a rotation spot. 

He started that season strong (3.22 ERA in nine starts), but hit the injured list in May with a forearm injury that eventually resulted in him undergoing Tommy John surgery. 

The Guardians elected to non-tender him at last November's deadline so he didn’t take up a roster spot in the offseason, but it’s fair to assume that a minor league reunion with him was always on the board. 

The Guardians gave Lively a return timeline of 12-16 months when he initially underwent Tommy John surgery, so it seems like the earliest he could return would be midway through the upcoming season, though we probably shouldn’t hold our breath for him to be back anytime soon. 

And the fact that Lively signed a two-year contract should contribute to that since he’ll be able to take up a minor league roster spot after the season (so long as he isn’t called up) instead of being a part of the major league roster crunch like he was at the end of 2025. 

The Guardians also have too many MLB-ready pitching options for their 2026 rotation, so the team’s decision makers likely won’t be in a rush to call Lively up either. 

Lively’s signing is another example of the Guardians rolling the dice on an injured pitcher, albeit this time it’s an injured pitcher they have a ton of familiarity with.

From Matthew Boyd and Alex Cobb in 2024 to John Means in 2025, Cleveland’s front office clearly trusts its pitching factory to get the most out of pitchers who are clearly not at full strength. 

It didn't take long for Lively to become a Guardians' fan favorite, and this contract all but confirms that he should get a chance to do so again in the future.