The Cleveland Guardians’ pursuit to fortify the bullpen continued on Wednesday afternoon, as the team announced a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays, while also designating a fan favorite for assignment to make more room on the 40-man roster.
Cleveland acquired LHP Justin Bruihl from Toronto on Wednesday, in exchange for cash considerations. The 28-year-old was designated for assignment last week, which made his exit from Toronto inevitable.
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The Guardians have been clear this offseason that they needed more depth in the bullpen, and now they add another arm to the mix with Bruihl’s addition.
Bruihl’s career stats don’t look great; he owns a career ERA of 5.27 and a WHIP of 1.372. In 2025, he had an ERA+ of 83, meaning he was 17 percent worse than the average MLB pitcher.
Still, there are some encouraging aspects to Bruihl’s skill set.
Bruihl is a lefty, and the Guardians needed to add another southpaw to the bullpen in case Tim Herrin’s inconsistencies continued into the 2026 season. He also had a strikeout rate of 27.7 percent last year, and swing-and-miss was something Cleveland needs when looking at the group from last season.
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The one glaring stat when looking at Bruihls’ strengths is his arm extension, which ranked in the 81st percentile during the 2025 season.
Extension is clearly a priority for Cleveland, whether through free-agent signings or trades for pitchers, and the organization has had success developing them in the past. It’ll be interesting to see what the Guardians do with Bruihl now that he’s in the bullpen.
May 1, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians right fielder Jhonkensy Noel (43) rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the fourth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
In order to make room for Bruihl on the 40-man roster, the Guardians designated Jhonkensy Noel for assignment.
Even though the right-hander has incredible natural power and bat speed, he struggled to make contact. He has an OPS of just .643 with a strikeout rate of 34 percent at the big-league level last season.
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Noel’s departure from the MLB roster does raise some more questions for Cleveland, such as who will be the right-handed outfielder on Cleveland’s roster next season, or if they’ll even have one.