Over 14 years ago, the then-Cleveland Indians (now the Guardians) drafted Shawn Armstrong out of East Carolina. Armstrong, after a strong 2025 season, is reportedly set to rejoin the team on a one-year deal.
A Look at Armstrong
Last season was a banner season for ex-Rangers reliever Shawn Armstrong, who’s made the rounds over the years as a Major League reliever. Armstrong pitched for eight MLB teams before 2026, with one of those being the team that drafted him in 2011: the Indians/Guardians.
But let’s get back to 2025 for a second. Armstrong finished last year with a stellar 2.31 ERA and 74 strikeouts over 74 innings. He also did an exceptional job limiting what any pitcher can: home runs and walks. Armstrong walked 20 over those 74 innings and allowed just five home runs.
Additionally, Armstrong notched nine saves for the Rangers last season. Texas entered 2025 without a defined closer. And after trying out Luke Jackson, Robert Garcia, and Phil Maton for that role, it was Armstrong who rose to the occasion to fill the void.
Armstrong finished the 2025 season with the third-best wOBA (.224) among relievers with 30+ games pitched. The only two with a better wOBA were Brooks Raley (.200) and Aroldis Chapman (.177).
So, what makes Armstrong such a formidable pitcher? Let’s break it down piece by piece.
For one, Armstrong is primarily a four-pitch pitcher, rotating between a four-seamer, sinker, cutter, and sweeper. While that is an arsenal that can deal with both lefties and righties, Armstrong was exceptionally good against same-sided hitters. Opposing right-handed batters hit .113/.185/.144 off him.
Armstrong’s four-seam fastball may be one of the most intriguing pitches in all of Major League Baseball. It’s a pitch that’s innocuous on paper: his four-seamer mainly sits in the low-to-mid-90s and doesn’t have premium riding action. Armstrong’s delivery does generate slightly above-average extension.
Yet, Armstrong’s fastball has consistently had a Whiff% north of 30% in each of the last five seasons. Generally speaking, 25-28% is very good. That is elite.
The thing, though, with Armstrong is that while his fastball doesn’t have an elite profile on paper, it just plays. It’s an offering that got called strikes (even ones that it shouldn’t have gotten), is a bit deceptive with his delivery — he hides it well — and is a pitch that he doesn’t lean on.
Tough call here on Rafaela.
Armstrong has generally used his four-seamer roughly 20-35% of the time over the years. He used to heavily lean on it before 2022; in the 2021 campaign, he used it over 50% of the time. Yet, the results on it were pretty good.
The other component that has to be taken into account is that he does have a lot of pitches to play off of it. Armstrong regularly uses a cutter that he’ll use to induce chases up and away, mirroring it off the four-seamer he’ll use up in the zone. Additionally, Armstrong has added a sweeper that differed, shape-wise, from the slurve he used previously in his career.
His sinker is primarily used against right-handed hitters. However, he’s primarily a fly-ball pitcher.
Per reports, the Guardians will give Shawn Armstrong a one-year deal worth $5.5MM.
Analysis
Despite what has been a good overall career, Armstrong has generally flown under the radar. That changed somewhat in 2023, a year that saw him post a sub-2.00 ERA for the Rays. However, reliever production can vary from year to year.
For Armstrong, he’s excelled as a strike-thrower. That’s worked to his detriment in some years, as his batted-ball metrics were below-average in 2022 and 2024. Nonetheless, it’s hard to argue with the results.
Armstrong joins a bullpen that will look different for the Guardians in 2025. Given what’s going on with Emmanuel Clase, it’s safe not to expect him back. Additionally, Kolby Allard and Jakob Junis, two key pieces from last year’s team, are now on the roster.
Thus, Armstrong has the chance to play setup man for a bullpen that includes Cade Smith as the main stopper, with Hunter Gaddis, Matt Festa, Colin Holderman, and Rule 5 Draft pick Peyton Pallette, among others.
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