5 starting pitchers the Cleveland Guardians should target before the trade deadline

At this point in the season, it is clear that the Cleveland Guardians are for real and are going to be a team looking to add to their roster rather than subtract from it at the Trade Deadline. There is one area in particular that the Guardians should look to target as trade talks heat up. Starting pitching. The Guardians had Shane Bieber for all of two starts this season before going down with an injury that required season-ending Tommy John surgery. That alone should have made acquiring a starter Cleveland's top priority, but there is more to it than that.

The Guardians are still waiting on Gavin Williams to make his season debut and recently just lost Carlos Carrasco to the injured list with a neck injury. Despite all of this, Cleveland is 37-18 and leading the American League Central division by 3.5 games. The fact a rotation primarily featuring Carrasco, Ben Lively, Tanner Bibee, Triston McKenzie, and Logan Allen has been able to do this is very impressive, but that does not mean they should not do anything to bolster this group. There is a chance that Lively will not be able to continue his remarkable start to 2024, as well as the possibility another arm will go down with an injury. To prevent either event from derailing their season, the Guardians should target one of the following five starting pitchers at or before the deadline.