Three games.
That’s how close the Cleveland Guardians were last season to reaching their first World Series since the 2016 season.
Fast forward to this July and Cleveland’s current 10-game losing streak has put it in position to become sellers at this season’s trade deadline, and one of the potential candidates is a former All-Star.
According to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, Cleveland could be open to moving off former All-Star and current closer Emmanuel Clase.
Clase has been dominant throughout his career, but last season was the cherry on top. He had a 0.61 ERA and 66 strikeouts across 74 appearances and 74 1/3 innings pitched.
He was easily the best reliever in all of baseball, as shown by his third-place finish in Cy Young voting and eleventh-place finish in MVP voting.
This season hasn’t come anywhere close to that performance. Entering Monday, Clase had a 3.29 ERA, 39 strikeouts and 18 saves across 39 appearances and 38 1/3 innings pitched.
He’s allowed just four earned runs since May 3, though, after allowing six earned runs in the first month of the season. Clase’s stellar performance of late could be a reason why Cleveland is reportedly interested in moving on from the 27-year-old who is its franchise leader in saves.
If Clase does end up on the trade block, the interest teams could have in him would be astronomical. He is not set to be a free agent until after the 2029 season and could be a real difference-maker for a postseason run.
Expect teams such as the Dodgers, Cubs, Phillies and Mets to all be interested in the flame-throwing righty if he is indeed made available prior to the trade deadline.
