The Cleveland Guardians are making more additions.
On Thursday, Feb. 12, Zack Meisel of The Athletic announced another pickup for the Guardians. They are currently finalizing a two-year minor league contract with Ben Lively, a starting pitcher who’s been with the team since 2024.
However, back in June of last season, he suffered an injury, which was initially expected to be a strained flexor tendon, but he ended up having to undergo Tommy John surgery. The injury was officially ruled to be damage to the ulnar collateral ligament.
This situation was expected to see him be unable to suit up for the team in 2026, but according to Meisel, he has a locker and everything at spring training.
The deal has not officially gone through yet, but for Lively to already be ready to go in Arizona suggests the two sides aren’t far away on the negotiations.
Throughout his time in The Land, the 25-year-old right-handed pitcher has been a great talent for the team. He’s amassed a 3.68 ERA across 38 games.
Primarily, he’s been utilized as a starting pitcher, but there’s a good chance the team could explore him as an inning-eating reliever. They already have five-to-six different guys competing for time as a starter. In 2025, his WHIP came in at 1.187, which, if he came out of the bullpen, could see that number drop even below 1.0 with how good his control is.
For now, though, it seems the Guardians are just focused on making sure he’s healthy to compete at some point in 2026.