Cleveland Guardians' All-Star Pitcher Compared To All-Time Great

Emmanuel Clase is drawing comparisons to the greatest closer to ever step on the mound.

Jun 30, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase (48) throws to first base during the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-USA TODAY Sports / William Purnell-USA TODAY Sports

Emmanuel Clase was one of five Cleveland Guardians players selected to the MLB All-Star Game over the weekend, and he may be the most deserving of the group.

The superstar closer has racked up a league-best 27 saves while also posting a minuscule 0.85 ERA, registering a video-game like WHIP of 0.638.

Clase's best pitch is his cutter, which has conjured up memories of another reliever who used to terrorize batters in the ninth inning: New York Yankees legend Mariano Rivera.

Recently, Toronto Blue Jays infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa paid Clase the ultimate compliment, comparing arguably his best pitch (he also features a nasty slider) to that of Rivera's.

"It's very Mariano-like," Kiner-Falefa said, via Ryan Lewis of The Akron Beacon Journal. "The velocity, with the control and the movement? He's one of those pitches like Mariano who could literally just tell you the cutter's coming in, and you might not hit it."

Clase's cutter averages 99.3 mph in velocity and sometimes hits triple digits.

Amazingly enough, Clase has never been a big-time strikeout pitcher. He has logged just 39 punchouts through 42.1 innings this season, and he averages 8.8 strikeouts per nine innings for his career.

But you know what? Rivera didn't fan a ton of hitters, either, recording 8.2 strikeouts per nine innings over the course of his illustrious 19-year MLB tenure.

Like Clase, however, Rivera didn't have to strike guys out. His cutter was virtually unhittable, resulting in a whole lot of meek groundouts and broken bats.

Clase is aiming to lead the majors in saves for the third straight season and just notched his third consecutive All-Star selection.

We'll see if the 26-year-old can maintain his incredible pace throughout the rest of 2024.