The Guardians should stay away from this recently DFA’d starting pitcher 

Last May, Erick Fedde dazzled in six scoreless innings against the Cleveland Guardians while with the Chicago White Sox. Although he only had three strikeouts, he mixed all of his pitches and kept the Guardians off balance thanks to his strong command. 

Fedde’s gone on quite a journey since then, as he was traded to the Cardinals at last year’s deadline. It ended up being a bit of a dud, however, as Fedde was bang average in St. Louis, which led to the team cutting him loose on Wednesday. 

While it’s easy to see that start and imagine him doing that to the opponents at Progressive Field every fifth day, the Guardians should stay far away from the veteran starter. 

The Guardians should stay away from Erick Fedde

Fedde, 32, posted a 5.22 ERA in 101 2/3 innings with the Cardinals this year prior to being cut loose. In total, he posted a 4.69 ERA in 157 1/3 innings across the 2024 and ‘25 season with the Cardinals. 

St. Louis acquired him at last year’s deadline from the White Sox in the hopes that he’d be a top-tier No. 3 starter in their rotation, but that just didn't end up being the case. 

He was a former first-round pick by Washington in 2014 and ended up spending six ineffective seasons with the Nationals before heading to Korea, where he put together an MVP-winning season in the KBO. 

He was able to parlay that to a two-year, $15 million deal with the White Sox, though he only ended up spending half a season in Chicago before being dealt to the Cardinals. 

Now, he’ll go through waivers, and, if he goes unclaimed, will be free to sign with any team. 

It shouldn’t be with the Guardians. 

While the last couple spots in the Guardians’ rotation have been a bit of a work-in-progress thanks to injuries and suspensions, it isn’t worth it for Cleveland to take a flier on Fedde. 

Slade Cecconi has emerged as a legit No. 3 starter, while Logan Allen and Joey Cantillo are both pitching like above-average four and five starters in the rotation. 

Maybe Fedde is better than one (or both of them in a vacuum), but this is a time where you should give them the runway to figure out what you have with them. Adding Fedde to the picture wouldn’t allow that to happen. 

Ironically, the reason for Fedde’s struggles this year may be traced back to the biggest accomplishment of his career. On May 9, Fedde threw a complete game shutout against the Nationals on 109 pitches, marking the first complete game of his career. 

He hasn’t looked like the same pitcher since, however. Fedde’s posted a 6.38 ERA in 55 innings since throwing that complete game, and allowed six runs in three innings against the lowly Rockies his last time out. 

And while all of Fedde's struggles likely don't go back to that outing, it doesn't change that fact that he hasn't looked like the same pitcher since.

Some time will roll the dice and try to see if they can be the ones to turn him around. It shouldn't be the Guardians.