The Cleveland Guardians ' had a quiet offseason opting to make a few minor moves rather than a blockbuster, roster-altering signing of trade. One of those small signings was bringing in veteran pitcher Ben Lively on a major-league deal.
Lively made his spring training debut in Cleveland's 7-4 victory over the San Diego Padres. He only threw 2.0 innings in the victory, but issued just one hit and retired six of the seven batters he faced.
This start certainly left a lasting impression on his manager Stephen Vogt.
"I thought the fastball had a lot of late life," said Vogt in after the outing. "Even when the velo isn't super high on the radar gun, it still has a lot of life and he was keeping it out of the middle of the plate and the slider was keeping hitters off balance. I thought he threw the ball really well."
The man behind the plate was also raved about Lively outing. David Fry, whose primary focus during camp has been catching, loved the movement and command his pitcher had.
"He looked really good," Fry said. "He's a guy who can really pitch and kind of work all around the zone with different pitches. He did that today. Like, there were a lot of balls that were kind of border lined that I think we could've got, but he was able to pitch out of it, get some double plays and ground balls."
Livley's 2023 season with the Cincinnati Reds was inconsistent. He had a 5.48 ERA in the 12 games he started but still logged 5.0 or more innings in nine of his total appearances. Every pitching staff needs someone who can eat innings and Livley has shown he can do that.
Cleveland's rotation seems all but set for Opening Day. However, Guardians fans know based on the last two seasons that pitcher health is never guaranteed. You need to have depth throughout the system if you want to stay in contention all season.
Luckily for the Guardians, it appears they have found someone who can fill that void if called upon.
As Fry said, "He's a pro."
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