Inbox: How might Guards’ postseason plans shake out?

This story was excerpted from Mandy Bell’s Guardians Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

It’s been a while since we’ve opened the Guardians’ Inbox and let’s face it, this is the time of year when questions are swirling on social media. Let’s try to address a handful of topics that were on Cleveland fans’ minds:

Who do you envision as part of a three- or four-person postseason rotation? — @davpatterso

Let’s start with the tricky one.

Tanner Bibee is a lock. From there, it’s a little more complicated.

The Guardians may need to ride whoever has the hot hand in the final weeks of the season. Track records prove that Ben Lively has earned the most trust for a potential Game 2, but his last start against the Pirates this weekend was rockier than most. If that’s an indication that fatigue is starting to set in with 40 more innings under his belt than in any of his other four big league seasons (and still a month left in the regular season), then maybe my answer would change before October. For now, it’s still Lively.

If it’s a four-person rotation, then Gavin Williams and Matthew Boyd –each of them get the ball in whatever order seems smartest given the situation. If it’s just a three-person rotation, Boyd may be doing enough to prove that he’s the next best option. Williams has elite stuff, and he can be dominant when he’s on. But his inconsistencies this year make me lean towards Boyd.

What are the odds Cleveland holds on to a bye spot? —@DinoLord05

First, the Guardians have to clinch the division. They’d like to think that 2 1/2 games over the Royals entering September would be enough to earn that title, but with three more games between these two clubs set for Monday-Wednesday (and then a series against the Twins at home later this month), that’s far from certain.

Once they do that, it all comes down to the Astros. As of now, Houston sits three games back of Cleveland. If the Astros surpass the Guardians, then Cleveland will have to host a three-game Wild Card Series.

All of this to say: It’s still very possible for the Guardians to have a bye in the first round, but they’ll have to work for it.

What do you attribute most to Boyd’s resurgence? — @AWhite713

Speaking of Boyd …

Honestly, it sounds so simple and cliché, but health. Every time he’s talked about this comeback, he’s mentioned how he feels better than he has in years. Tommy John surgery is always a big question mark for pitchers, not knowing how they’ll bounce back. But clearly, Boyd is finally throwing pain-free, and it’s making a huge impact. I’m sure he’s also worked on some mechanical things and has found other tricks to improve, but health has to be at the top of the list of reasons for this resurgence.

If you had to put a prediction on when we see Chase DeLauter’s and Travis Bazzana’s Major League debuts, what would they be? —@MichaelHook_CLE

For DeLauter, it’s going to depend largely on his health. We’ve seen what he can be when he’s consistently on the field, but he’s battled three different stints on the IL this year that significantly impacted his playing time. Assuming he can be healthy out of the gate in Spring Training and remain that way, let’s say June 2025.

It’s hard to predict for Bazzana since we haven’t had too big of a sample size to see how his bat will translate to professional ball. But let’s be optimistic and guess September 2025.

Will Triston McKenzie ever make it back? Traded? Cut? Surgery? —@krause_ray_llf

McKenzie hasn’t shown enough consistency in Triple-A Columbus to make it back as a viable starting option for the Guardians in the most critical part of their season. But that doesn’t mean his chances of coming back up are completely erased. Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said there’s a chance they may use him in a relief role before the end of the year.

Maybe they can try to trade him, but other teams know the inconsistencies he’s battled, as well. Maybe the Guardians can work their pitching factory magic and help him rediscover his 2022 self. But, as of now, surgery doesn’t seem to be in the plans.

Has the ship sailed on James Karinchak? — @AmadorRick

Considering we never saw him in Spring Training, he’s still in Arizona and hasn’t pitched in any games this year as he goes back and forth between ramping up his activities and “deloading” as the team has said, it doesn’t seem like an optimistic sign for his future.