One Guardians Pitcher Who Deserves A Lot More Credit
Regardless of what people want to say about this Guardians bullpen, they have been one of the best bullpens in all of baseball throughout the season. Especially since the All-Star break.
This is in large part thanks to their All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase who has looked virtually untouchable at times this season. But he isn't the only one in that Guardians bullpen who is responsible for shutting down games.
Another pitcher who deserves a lot of credit for where this pitching staff is at is Sam Hentges.
Over the last two weeks, Hentges has pitched 19.2 innings while only allowing one earned run. This comes out to a 0.46 ERA and a 0.56 WHIP. Hentges has had unbelievable command during this stretch. He has 23 strikeouts while only allowing three runs in his last 15 appearances.
These are the numbers of an elite reliever.
One of the most underrated parts of Hentges' game is that he's able to go out on there and give Tito and that staff more than one inning of work. This is huge, especially in a league where it seems three batters for a bullpen arm seems to be the max
Sam being able even to go for one of two more frames saves the Guardians another pitcher in the bullpen which can sound small but can have a big effect on the series.
Hentges is also the only lefty the Guardians have coming out of that bullpen. Providing this variety while being efficient as he has been is turning him into a weapon for Francona.
All playoff teams have one thing in common, good pitching. It's almost impossible to win without it. Hentges helps build the depth of the Guardians bullpen which will be vital as they seek a playoff spot in the final month of the season.
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