Cleveland Guardians are Playing a Dangerous Game With Their Bullpen

The Cleveland Guardians have a dominant bullpen, but they may be relying on their relief pitchers is a little too much.

Aug 13, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase (48) follows through on a pitch in the ninth inning against the Chicago Cubs at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports / David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Guardians' bullpen is great. We know this. The Guardians rank No. 1 in the MLB in bullpen ERA by a wide margin, boasting a 2.65 mark.

Cleveland's dynamic pen was on full display Tuesday night against the New York Yankees, with five of the Guardians' six relief pitchers used not allowing a run in a 9-5, 12-inning win.

However, just because Cleveland's bullpen has been dominant does not mean that the Guardians are not playing with fire.

Currently, Cleveland has five relievers that have made at least 55 appearances this season. That is the most in baseball. As a matter of fact, only 15 relief pitchers in total have made 55 appearances in 2024. The Guardians own a third of them (h/t Mike Axisa of CBS Sports).

Taking it a step further, in 2023, only five teams had five relievers hit the 55-game mark. But that was for an entire season. Cleveland has already done that with over a month to go.

No team has had five relievers post 65 outings since the 2015 Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Guardians are in reach of that.

We can appreciate Cleveland's bullpen all we want. It is one of the best sets of relief pitchers we have ever seen. There is no question about it.

But is the Guardians' bullpen becoming too taxed?

We already saw signs of Cleveland's pen breaking earlier in the month, although the Guardians have appeared to right the ship in that department. But there is still plenty of baseball left, and at some point, arms are going to begin displaying fatigue.

Cleveland has relied heavily on its relievers this season due to the overall ineptitude of its starting rotation. While the Guardians have the best bullpen in the majors, they also lay claim to one of the worst starting pitching staffs, which is one of the biggest reasons for their inconsistency.

Thus far, Cleveland's formula has worked. It boasts the best the American League's best record at 73-52, and it sits in first place in the AL Central by four games in the loss column.

But you have to wonder if this will all ultimately blow up in the Guardians' faces.