The Guardians have finally figured out the back of their bullpen 

The Cleveland Guardians’ series against the Miami Marlins prior to the All-Star Break may have been one of their best series of the year.

Not only did they rack up a series win, but they got three solid outings from their starters, some big offensive games from unheralded players on their roster and, perhaps most importantly, got some shutout outings from their bullpen.

In total, Cleveland’s bullpen finished the series with a 1.93 ERA over 9 1/3 innings while racking up two saves in three close games.

But the biggest positive from that series came in how relievers were used in those wins — something that had been a bit of an Achilles heel for the Guardians for most of the first half. 

Hunter Gaddis, Franco Aleman and Cade Smith have been great in the back of Cleveland's bullpen

The three Guardians relievers who pitched the most over that span were Hunter Gaddis, Cade Smith and Franco Aleman, each of whom tossed two innings in the series.

While it’s not a surprise to see Gaddis and Smith there considering they’re the two most important relievers in Cleveland’s ‘pen, Aleman getting that much usage is a positive sign considering he entered the weekend with just five big league appearances under his belt. 

Even though Aleman pitched well in his first two appearances with the Guardians at the end of May, they sent him back to the minors as a part of their bullpen shuffling. 

He got called up again at the start of July, but his first three appearances came in low-leverage when the Guardians were losing, which made it seem like the Guardians didn’t trust him. 

But they provided a new answer to that question against the Marlins in a series where he picked up two holds, highlighted by an eighth inning appearance on Saturday in a game where Colin Holderman picked up the save. 

He followed that up with another high-leverage outing on Sunday with a scoreless sixth inning after Joey Cantillo left the game. 

Aleman always seemed like a solid high-leverage option for the Guardians, and it’s exciting to see the team finally use him in that way. 

Then there’s Smith and Gaddis, who both have found their groove and are back to being one of the best one-two punches in baseball. 

Gaddis in particular has been great in particular, as he’s in the midst of straight 11 scoreless innings with two walks and 15 strikeouts. 

After having a 9.53 ERA through his first eight appearances of the season, Gaddis has settled in and has gotten back to being one of the best relievers in baseball. He picked up a hold in the first and last game of Cleveland’s series against Miami. 

Smith also worked in the first and last games of Cleveland’s series, and recorded one save. Although he allowed one run in his final outing in the form of a Griffin Conine home run, he’s still one of the best relievers in baseball and has recorded an MLB-leading 28 saves. 

The Guardians’ bullpen is always going to be incredibly important to their success given the lack of production from their lineup, it took a bit for Stephen Vogt and the team’s decision makers to figure out the best way to use the weapons in Cleveland’s ‘pen. 

But their series against the Marlins showed that their bullpen picture is starting to come into focus.

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