Guardians’ opening day pitching staff set; Curry will join Clippers’ rotation
The Cleveland Guardians have set their opening day pitching staff. The bullpen had only one open spot for most of the spring, but that became two after Sam Hentges was sidelined with shoulder inflammation.
Tim Herrin, a lefty, was already a top contender to join the eight-man bullpen even before Hentges, the only left-hander with a secure spot, went down with the injury. Herrin will now fill the void as the lefty option in the bullpen while progressing at the major league level.
“He did a good job and we told him, we said hey, we wanted him to be excited about making it, but he's not the finished product. We recognize that,” Francona said of Herrin. “But the hope is that while he's developing, he can help us win and he can still develop and that will do the best we can.”
Hunter Gaddis offers the bullpen a multi-inning option, while Xzavion Curry and others will join the starting rotation with the Triple-a Clippers.
Guardians could keep 3 catchers
Catchers Mike Zunino, Cam Gallagher and Meibrys Viloria could all break camp with the big league club. It'll offer the Guardians some added protection for Zunino, who is coming off of thoracic outlet syndrome surgery that ended his 2022 season. Neither Gallagher or Viloria are on the 40-man roster, so it would require two corresponding moves before Opening Day.
The Guardians feel Zunino is healthy going into Thursday's season-opening game in Seattle. But they also want to ensure they can be cautious with him and his shoulder if needed. Zunino signed a one-year, $6 million deal this offseason.