Pressure is on Guardians rotation to be better in 2025, but they should be up to the task

There are a handful of obstacles that stand between the Cleveland Guardians and success in 2025, but there is one that sticks out that could be the largest—Cleveland's starting rotation. There is plenty of promise among this group, but there will be a lot of pressure on them to perform at a certain level if the Guardians are going to match or exceed what they achieved last season. It may seem like a daunting task, but there is no reason to believe they will not be up to the challenge.

A group consisting of Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams, Ben Lively, Luis Ortiz, and Logan Allen will be Cleveland's starting rotation once the regular season begins. Now, this group may not seem like much once you get past the recently extended Bibee, but there is a lot more to work with here than it may initially seem.

Williams is coming off a down year in 2024, partly due to an injury sustained in spring training, but he is ready to bounce back this year, and his spring training performance appears to be a good indicator of exactly that (2.94 ERA, 0.973 WHIP, 15.3 K/9 in 12.1 innings pitched). This upcoming season should see Williams perform at the high level that was expected of him last year and be a dominant presence in Cleveland's rotation.

Even though Lively is not at the same level as Bibee or Williams, but he should be more than capable of providing another innings-eater type of performance for the Guardians. Even if Lively's number slip a little from his career-best season in 2024 (3.81 ERA, 1.245 WHIP, 8.0 K/9 in 29 games), this would still prove very useful to a Guardians team that needs stability from their pitching staff in the worst way.

Ortiz is someone who had a breakout performance of sorts for the Pittsburgh Pirates last season, and that was clearly a motivating factor in Cleveland acquiring his services. With a 3.32 ERA and 1.113 WHIP in 37 games last season, Ortiz is looking to continue his newfound effectiveness in Cleveland's rotation. There are some concerns about whether or not his performance will carry over into 2025, mainly his low ground ball and strikeout rates, but he is not being asked to be a top of the rotation starter. Anything remotely in the ballpark of his career 3.93 ERA and 1.326 WHIP would be more than adequate from Ortiz in his respective spot in Cleveland's rotation.

There are concerns about whether or not Allen will be a viable option for the Guardians, as there are reasons why he was involved in a competition to be Cleveland's fifth starter, ultimately prevailing over Triston McKenzie. Allen, like McKenzie, was very inconsistent last season, resulting in being sent down to Triple-A Columbus. As their fifth starter, Allen just needs to be consistently available and avoid throwing an in-game version of batting practice to opposing hitters.

Admittedly, this group of arms is not at the same level as those that graced the mound for the majority of the 2010s, but this staff is more than capable of being one of the reasons why the Guardians can be one of the most competitive teams in baseball this season.