Is it time to worry about the Cleveland Guardians’ bullpen? 

Last season, the Cleveland Guardians’ bullpen posted an MLB-best 2.93 ERA across the final two months of the season. 

While that stat wouldn’t have been much of a surprise coming into the season given the talent at the back end of the Guardians’ bullpen, it was even more impressive when you consider it came without All-World closer Emmanuel Clase, who was placed on paid leave at the end of July after an investigation into alleged pitch-rigging. 

For most teams, the loss of a player of Clase’s quality would have torpedoed any chance of them competing. But it ended up serving as the catapult that shot the Guardians into the postseason thanks to a historic comeback from 15 1/2 games down in the American League Central. 

That magic hasn’t followed into this season, however, as the Guardians’ bullpen entered play on Sunday with a 5.40 ERA — the fifth-worst mark in the league. 

While it was always going to be tough to make up for the loss of Clase, Cleveland’s front office tried its hardest to replace him in the aggregate by adding a variety of big league relievers over the offseason. 

Although there’s still a lot of time left for the Guardians’ bullpen to make up for things for their slow start, it’s still been a bit alarming to see them struggle so much out of the gate.

Still, it's not time to panic... yet.

Things are starting to look up in the Guardians’ bullpen 

It’s worth pointing out the Guardians’ bullpen had one of its best outings in recent memory on Sunday in the form of 4 2/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Joey Cantillo.

Even if those numbers are a bit flawed because Matt Festa allowed one of his inherited runners to score, part of the reason that happened was because of two misplays from Juan Brito. 

The best outing of the day came from rookie Peyton Pallette, who made his first appearance in nine days and pitched two scoreless innings. While we all knew there’d be occasions where he’d go days between appearances (such is life for a Rule 5 pick), it still takes a lot to come in and fill that role. 

Manager Stephen Vogt told reporters after the game that Pallette’s appearance was one of his favorite outings of the year. Part of the reason for that is because there haven’t been as many good outings as usual to choose from. 

But things seem to be on the upswing thanks in large part to a resurgence from Smith, who has thrown five straight scoreless innings after allowing five earned runs across his first six appearances of the season. 

He also got his high-leverage running mate back in the form of Hunter Gaddis, who returned from the injured list earlier this week and has made three appearances since. 

That said, they’re still going to need a bit more from their middle relievers if they want to be a true contender. 

Armstrong’s been “the best” of the Guardians’ offseason acquisitions, though he’s currently boasting a 4.66 ERA thanks to a disastrous outing against the Orioles on Friday. Still, he’s better than those stats, and is clearly high up on the trust tree. 

Connor Brogdon seemed to have worked his way up there thanks to a solid opening series, but he’s combined to allow four runs across his last two appearances. His spot on the roster could be in serious jeopardy soon. 

But at least he’s on the MLB roster, which can’t be said for Colin Holderman, who was sent down to Triple-A after two ineffective innings. 

While the Guardians’ bullpen struggles have been a bit scary to see, any bullpen led by Erik Sabrowski, Gaddis and Smith is going to be in good shape. It’s just going to be a matter of everything clicking at once. 

Sunday’s win could be a step in that direction. 

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