Guardians pitching staff ranked just outside of Top 5 at season's midway point

The All-Star Break is almost here, and the Cleveland Guardians are one of the best teams in baseball. With a record of 57-35, Cleveland has surpassed even the wildest, most optimistic projections for how their 2024 season will play out. There is one area of the team that most were down on entering the year, and that did not change much very early in the season. Their pitching staff. In fact, it was very much a doom and gloom scenario after losing Shane Bieber for the year after just two starts, but it appears that those who were capable of picking up the slack did that, and then some.

In a recent ranking of the teams with the best pitching so far, the Cleveland Guardians have come in ranked as the sixth-best group, according to Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller in his MLB Midseason Rankings for the Top 10 Pitching Staffs in 2024. Miller has Cleveland ranked as the best pitching staff in the American League Central division and fourth overall in the American League.

Cleveland's pitchers being ranked this high does come as a bit of surprise, as even Miller noted, "The Guardians are dead last in fWAR in their starting rotation, with an unsightly 4.53 ERA and the league's highest home run rate (1.53 HR/9).". Only Tanner Bibee and Ben Lively are the only current regular members of the Guardians' rotation with more than two starts to their name who do not currently own an ERA above 5.00. It is the Emmanuel Clase-led bullpen however that has been able to keep the Guardians on the right track and has landed them just outside the Top-5 of these rankings.

Led by closer Emmanuel Clase, Cleveland's relievers have cumulative marks of 2.58 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 9.7 K/9.

Cleveland's bullpen has been leaned on time and time again this season, perhaps too much, to be honest. While they have been effective when called upon, it does not last forever. At some point, the Guardians need longer outings from their starters if this bullpen is still going to have gas in the tank come playoff time.

It has been obvious for quite some time that something is going to have to be done about their rotation, and that means more than the low-cost deals of Matthew Boyd and Spencer Howard. Cleveland needs to go out and get another top to middle-of-the-rotation starter if they are truly going to win the division and play competitive baseball once the playoffs begin.