Guardians figuring out who will pitch when in deep, talented 'pen

CLEVELAND -- From the start of Spring Training, the Guardians only had one label in their bullpen: Emmanuel Clase, closer.

From there, the team knew it would have to learn about this group of relievers to determine who will pitch when. Everyone is versatile. Each arm has earned the trust to handle leverage spots out of the gate, considering the ‘pen carried a 14 1/3 inning scoreless streak into the eighth inning of the Guardians’ 7-5 loss to the White Sox at Progressive Field on Tuesday. But soon, more labels could emerge.

“I think roles will start to develop, and they have to some extent,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said before Tuesday’s loss, “but we also feel good about any of our guys.”

Maybe that next role will be the eighth-inning man.

When a team has someone as electric as Clase, who has proven the last two years that he can take the ball as often as possible, it’s important to have another reliable guy in the eighth inning to bridge that gap to the flamethrower. The Guardians entered the season knowing that Scott Barlow could fill that role, considering he was the only other hurler in the mix who had closing experience. But Vogt has turned to a handful of options.

We’re 11 games into the season and we’ve seen four relievers work the eighth: Barlow, Tim Herrin, Cade Smith and Tyler Beede. Herrin pitched in the eighth on Opening Day. Smith has gotten the ball twice in the eighth after showing that his inexperience is merely a fun fact for audiences watching and certainly doesn’t hinder his performance. But it’s Beede and Barlow who have been turned to the most.

“We have so many different options,” Vogt said, “which is a really good thing that everyone in our ‘pen could throw at any time and we trust them to do that and that's not a luxury that everyone has.”

Beede is intriguing simply because he was expected to be the long-relief option for the Guardians. He was stretched out as a starter all spring and was competing with Carlos Carrasco to be the fifth starter when it was clear that Gavin Williams would not be ready by Opening Day. After his first appearance of the season was two innings, the rest have been one-inning outings -- all in the eighth.

Barlow has seen the eighth inning four times this year. He’s the only reliever to have given up runs in that frame for Cleveland, which included the two game-winning runs against the White Sox on Tuesday after a weird, broken-bat single sparked the Chicago offense. The Guardians liked the trust Barlow had in his fastball toward the end of spring. They obviously were high on his breaking pitches that have been his bread and butter. Plus, with the weak contact he induces, he’s an easy candidate for the role, but walks have been his kryptonite so far. And now, there’s another contender emerging.

Hunter Gaddis is proving that his transition from starter to reliever was the best move the team could’ve made. As a starter, Gaddis averaged 93.4 mph on his four-seamer with the Guardians last year. Entering the day, the pitch had averaged 96.4 mph as a reliever. After throwing seven more on Tuesday (that topped out at 98.1 mph), he has yet to give up a hit on any of the 42 heaters he’s thrown.

“Starting before, you kind of save some energy,” Gaddis said in Minneapolis. “Not completely. But just going out there and letting it [go] as much as I can is really fun.”

He hasn’t worked his way to the eighth just yet, but his results are catching the attention of everyone in the dugout. If he can continue to be as lights-out as he’s been, he may force his way into that role.

“It takes a certain personality to be able to take the ball in those high leverage positions and come in and say, 'Here's what I got. I dare you to hit it,'” Vogt said. “And that's what [Gaddis has] done.

“You look at his demeanor and he's going to give everything he's got for 20 to 25 pitches and it's coming right after you. That's what you want out of a leverage bullpen guy [and Gaddis has] been doing that now for what, two months? So, it's been really fun to watch that progression.”