Just like that, Justin Bruihl’s tenure as a Cleveland Guardian could come to an end.
Well, on Saturday, Bruihl was designated for assignment for a second time in December, as the Guardians made the Shawn Armstong signing official, clearing a spot on their 40-man roster.
We have signed RHP Shawn Armstrong to one-year Major League contract with a mutual option for the 2027 season.
In a corresponding move, we have DFA’d LHP Justin Bruihl.
Bruihl is once again available for the 29 other teams to pick up on waivers. Of course, there is the possibility that a team jumps the waiver wire and trades for him, just like the Guardians did last Thursday. That doesn’t seem likely, however, as Bruihl has over five years of minor league service time, allowing him to outright the assignment and enter free agency.
The left-handed pitcher has spent parts of the last five seasons in the big leagues, albeit with just over a year of service time. Bruihl went undrafted and signed as a non drafted free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the summer of 2017. He made his debut four years later, and spent parts of three seasons with the team, authoring a 3.65 ERA and 4.47 FIP with the team.
Bruihl was eventually traded for cash considerations after being DFA’ed in the summer of 2023, this time to the Colorado Rockies. Before the 2024 season, Bruihl signed a minor league deal with the Cincinnati Reds, but never pitched for them. Instead, he threw five and two-thirds innings with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2024.
Last off-season, Bruihl signed a minor-league deal with the Blue Jays. Over 13.2 innings pitched, the left-handed pitcher had a 5.27 ERA and 4.16 FIP, posting a career-best 27.7 K% while his BB% jumped to 10.8%.
Time will tell if another team will take a flier on Bruihl, because if they do, he’ll remain on that team’s 40-man roster.