Emmanuel Clase Makes Incredible Cleveland Guardians History

Emmanuel Clase passes Bob Wickman and takes sole possession of second place on the Cleveland Guardians' all-time saves leaderboard.

Jun 1, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase (48) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Washington Nationals at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports / Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Emmanuel Clase took the mound for the Cleveland Guardians in the ninth on Tuesday night and quickly worked a one-two-three inning against the Detroit Tigers, clinching his 30th save of the season. 

This save had quite a bit of significance, though. It was Clase’s 140th save as a member of the organization, which gives him sole possession of second place for the most saves in franchise history, passing Bob Wickman on the list. 

Apr 8, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase (48) celebrates after the Guardians defeated the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-USA TODAY Sports / David Dermer-USA TODAY Sports

The leader of this list remains Cody Allen, who recorded 149 saves during his Cleveland tenure. Clase is now only nine wins away from tying the all-time record and ten saves away from taking sole possession of the first place. Given his pace, Clase should have no problem passing Allen in the next two-to-three weeks.

What makes all of this so incredible is how fast Clase has been able to rack up this many saves with one team.

In just three and a half seasons with Cleveland, Clase is on the verge of taking over as the all-time saves leader. This is something that took Wickman six years and Allen seven seasons to accomplish.

Clase currently has a career of 1.76 ERA, 233 ERA+, 2.31 FIP, and a 0.899 WHIP with Cleveland. This is the definition of pure dominance on the mound. 

There’s no doubt that Clase will go down as the greater closer in franchise history if he hasn’t reached that level already.