Wild Card Series has provided starting pitching litmus test Guardians will need to answer in ALDS

This year’s Wild Card Series has featured some varied pitching approaches. On one hand, there’s the Phillies and Yankees, who let their starting pitchers (Cristopher Sánchez and Cam Schlittler) both throw 115+ pitches in their starts. 

But on the other hand, there was an Astros-White Sox series where just one player threw more than 55 pitches along with the Yankees-Red Sox finale where Sonny Gray was pulled in the fifth inning after just 70 pitches. 

Gray’s hook may not be on the same level as Kevin Cash pulling Blake Snell in the 2020 World Series, it did prompt the pitcher to say that he wished the Red Sox would have “lived and died” by him. 

The Guardians may not have had to make any of those decisions in the Wild Card series, there’s going to be a point where they’re going to need to make some kind of decision about whether to pull a starter. 

It’s the kind of stuff that can quickly become fodder for fanbases and talk radio, along with being the thing that can make (or destroy) legacies. 

The Guardians pitching plan is going to be put to the test this postseason

We’ve gotten a couple looks into how Stephen Vogt and the Guardians’ front office has viewed their starters in the Guardians’ past two postseason runs. 

In 2024 the only time where a Guardians pitcher made it to the fifth inning came in Game 5 of the ALCS when Tanner Bibee pitched 5 2/3 innings. 

Bibee pitched 4 2/3 innings in his start in last year’s Wild card series against the Tigers, while Gavin Williams went six innings in Game 1. 

Williams’ start marked the first time a Guardians starter pitched six innings in the postseason since Triston McKenzie went six innings against the Rays in the 2022 Wild Card Series (which came a day after Shane Bieber went seven innings). 

Part of the reason why Vogt has had a quicker hook in the postseason in the past two postseasons has been the strength of his bullpen. 

In 2024, he could call on Cade Smith at pretty any juncture since he had Emmanuel Clase lurking at the back of the bullpen, while last year’s bullpen was more of a committee approach thanks to the jumbling caused by Clase’s suspension. 

This year’s bullpen has that same kind of committee approach, though Smith is the defined closer. 

That said, Smith covered multiple innings in four of his September appearances, which could be a preview of what’s to come in the postseason.

He may not be asked to cover three innings like Phillies interim manager Don Mattingly tried with Jhoan Duran in Game 1 of their Wild Card Series against the Braves, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him enter the game earlier than the ninth inning. 

We know that Gavin Williams and Parker Messick are going to start the first two games of the ALDS, and both of them have shown they’re ready to go deep into games. 

Although both of them set a new career high in the regular season, Messick finished the year by throwing 90+ pitches in 10 of his last 11 starts (excluding his final tune-up) while Williams threw 89+ innings in 10 of his last 12 starts. 

Their durability shouldn’t be a problem; it’s going to come down to a matter of trust. 

Tracy’s lack of trust in Gray is going to be a story all winter in Boston, it’s on Vogt to make sure that doesn’t become a story this winter in Cleveland. 

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