The Cleveland Guardians haven’t done much in free agency this offseason, but they did land a pitcher from the open market on Thursday.

He’s a familiar face: Ben Lively.

According to The Athletic’s Zack Meisel, the Guardians are signing Lively to a two-year contract.

Lively had Tommy John surgery in June, so he’s not going to be ready for Opening Day.

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The 33-year old right-hander stands 6-foot-4 and has made improvements as his career has gone along.

In his nine starts before getting hurt in 2025, Lively had a 3.22 ERA.

He had joined Cleveland before the 2024 season. In that campaign, he made 29 starts and had a 3.81 ERA with 7.0 strikeouts per nine innings.

Lively had previously pitched for the Phillies, Royals and Reds.

His career ERA is 4.38, and he had a bit of a journey away from MLB, not pitching at the top level from 2020-22.

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Now, Lively has to work hard again to make it back to a major league mound. The Tommy John surgery likely is a year-long absence, if not longer, but Cleveland will hope Lively can be back at some point in this season.

They’ll be more fully looking at the 2027 season as when Lively can be at full strength and potentially battle for a starting rotation spot.

Lively clearly feels comfortable with Cleveland, choosing to come back to the Guardians to conduct his rehab and try to get back on the field.

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