Guardians’ Ben Lively Records Another Strong Outing In Victory Over Blue Jays
Early on this season, many Cleveland Guardians fans were wondering which starting pitchers would step up after Shane Bieber was shut down for the 2024 campaign.
One of these pitchers has been a perhaps under-the-radar offseason signing in Ben Lively.
On Saturday, the 32-year-old earned his seventh win of the season, as Cleveland defeated the Toronto Blue Jays by a score of 6-3.
For the fourth time this season, Lively was one out away from a quality start. The right-hander pitched 5.2 innings, allowing three hits, two earned runs, and two walks, while throwing four strikeouts in 82 pitches (57 strikes). His two earned runs allowed were courtesy of a pair of two-out solo home runs.
With his latest performance, Lively has earned the win in six of his last seven starts. He is now 7-3 with a 3.03 ERA, 56 strikeouts, and just 20 walks in his first 12 starts with the Guardians.
After making a combined 26 appearances (20 starts) in his first three MLB seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies and Kansas City Royals from 2017 through 2019, he spent 2019 through 2021 with the Samsung Lions of the Korean Baseball Organization. Lively then made 18 starts with Triple-A Louisville in 2022. He eventually made 19 appearances (12 starts) for the Cincinnati Reds last year, going 4-7 with a 5.38 ERA, 79 strikeouts, and 25 walks.
Lively was originally drafted by Cleveland in the 26th round of the 2010 MLB Draft out of Gulf Breeze High School in Florida. However, he ultimately committed to the University of Central Florida.
Now, 14 years later, Lively is making a substantial impact for the first MLB organization to give him a chance.
LOGAN POTOSKY
Logan Potosky is an aspiring play-by-play sports broadcaster who, to date, has called approximately 350+ hours of professional, college, and high school sporting events. He is currently the Play-by-Play Broadcaster for the Lake County Captains, the High-A Affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. He graduated from John Carroll University in May of 2023 with a degree in Communication, with a concentration in Digital Media, and a minor in Entrepreneurship.