Guardians owe resurgent 2024 season to the one move they didn’t make

With just five more wins, the Cleveland Guardians will eclipse their 2023 win total. Before the 2024 campaign began, most pundits thought the Minnesota Twins would walk away with the American League Central crown. There's still a possibility that could happen, but at the moment, the league has every reason to believe Cleveland is a contender to represent the AL in that series beginning on October 25.

The Guardians' success can be attributed to several factors: Steven Kwan's standout campaign, Josh Naylor and José Ramírez's combined 189 RBI, and most notably, the bullpen. This formidable relief corps could be the key to leading Cleveland to their 12th all-time AL Central title. At the head of this prolific bullpen is the three-time All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase.

The right-hander owns an absurd 0.63 earned run average in 58 games, tallying 37 total saves — the second most in baseball behind Ryan Helsley of the St. Louis Cardinals. The highest his ERA has been this season was 1.29, per Baseball Reference. To think the Ohio outfit was actually fielding offers for this guy in December is insane to even ponder.

It's a fact, though. In December, per reports by ESPN's Jeff Passan, the Guardians were "open to dealing" the closer after he finished 2023 with the most saves in the AL for the second successive season. His contract and talent made him incredibly attractive.

In addition, it made some sense at the time for Cleveland. Clase did lead the league in blown saves while undergoing a 7.2 percent dip in his strikeout rate to 21.2 percent — the lowest of his career to date. His hard-hit rate also jumped below league average last season, with his BABIP (batting average on balls in play) nearly reaching .300. Thankfully, Cleveland didn't pull the trigger. Now, it's reaping the rewards of a decision to hold onto a player who is now a central piece to the improved results on the diamond.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.

Emmanuel Clase garners at least some consideration for the AL Cy Young

Sunday night, in a defeat that saw Cleveland's offensive struggle, Clase pitched yet another scoreless inning — his fifth consecutive.

One could even argue that Clase is pushing for the Cy Young Award, despite being a reliever. His exceptional control numbers, ability to limit hard contact and outstanding chase rate warrant consideration from voters for his potential as a Cy Young winner.

His 99+ MPH cutter is among the best pitches, if not the best pitch in baseball right now. Opponents are hitting .160 against his cutter, a significant improvement from the .267 batting average across last season. Below is a clip of him embarrassing two Cubs in a Guardians win just a few games back.

Nobody out of the bullpen has secured a Cy Young award since Dodgers right-hander Eric Gagne in 2003, who recorded 55 saves in 82.1 innings pitched. Clase, like Marcus Smart did for guards by winning the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, could put an end to this drought.