Guardians replenish pitching depth on second day of MLB Draft

The first day of the 2024 MLB Draft saw the Cleveland Guardians select Oregon State second baseman Travis Bazzana first overall, to much acclaim. This was in addition to selecting pitcher Braylon Dougthy with a competitive balance pick and catcher Jacob Cozart in the second round. With these selections now in the books, Cleveland's front office had their eyes set on addressing a different part of their minor league system. Pitching.

The Guardians were rather aggressive in attacking their goal of replenishing their pitching depth in the minor leagues, taking eight pitchers in rounds 3-10.

While not every pitcher selected is projected to be a starter, adding as many arms as they possibly could was an absolute must for the Guardians at this moment in time.

There once was a time when it appeared that the Guardians had an endless supply of pitching talent waiting to be called up in the minors. As the years progressed and the organization moved on from some aging major league starters in favor of their younger talent, Cleveland saw some of those arms flourish, others flounder, and a couple that are still relatively unknown commodities at this time. This has resulted in the starting rotation's current configuration, which is a pieced-together hodgepodge of arms.

Even though this group has been successful enough to have Cleveland holding the best record in the American League, the sustainability of this current group is very questionable. The Guardians know they cannot keep resorting to low-cost options, hoping that they pan out, and the best way to avoid being in that situation is by cultivating some homegrown pitching talent. This mass selection of pitchers on day two is a clear indicator of how the organization views its own internal options and what its biggest long-term organizational needs are.

The fact that the front office was able to identify that they needed to add more pitching into their minor league system shows that they truly understand the lack of organizational depth at the position. The nine arms selected over the first two days in the draft should help usher in the next era of young Guardians pitching, and that should help extend their current competitive window.