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10/05 12:12 CDT Guardians' Ben Lively left off the ALDS roster against the
Tigers. Montero on, Mize off for Detroit
Guardians' Ben Lively left off the ALDS roster against the Tigers. Montero on,
Mize off for Detroit
Ben Lively was left off Cleveland's roster for the AL Division Series against
Detroit despite being an invaluable addition to the Guardians' starting
rotation this season.
The New York Yankees left off pitcher Marcus Stroman and reliever Mark Leiter
Jr. along with injured infielders Anthony Rizzo and DJ LeMahieu but included
relievers Jake Cousins and Tim Mayza along with speedster Duke Ellis, who has
played in just five big league games.
Lively went 13-10 with a 3.81 ERA in 29 starts for the Guardians, who signed
him to a one-year contract as a free agent in December. The right-hander led
the team in wins and was arguably the club's most consistent pitcher for the
first three months of the season.
The Guardians and Detroit Tigers announced their rosters Saturday about three
hours before Game 1.
The Tigers, who swept Houston in the AL wild-card round, made only one change.
Rookie right-hander Keider Montero was added for the ALDS in place of righty
Casey Mize.
Added to give Cleveland depth, Lively helped the AL Central champions overcome
the loss of former Cy Young winner Shane Bieber, who made just two starts
before having season-ending Tommy John surgery.
The Guardians also were without starter Gavin Williams until July because of an
elbow injury, and Triston McKenzie and Logan Allen --- both penciled in as
starters --- struggled and were sent to the minor leagues.
Cleveland's bullpen has been MLB's best all season, and manager Stephen Vogt
elected to carry 12 pitchers. Two notable contributors were left off: Nick
Sandlin, who went 8-0 with a 3.75 ERA in 68 games and Pedro Avila, who was 6-1
with a 3.81 ERA in 54 appearances.
Vogt said it was hard leaving anyone off. He also chose utilityman Tyler
Freeman because of his versatility over rookie outfielder Angel Martinez.
"It's terrible, not fun at all," Vogt said. "Guys like Angel, that contributed
a lot to us in our success. It's hard when you use 40-something, 50 guys. We've
made the roster for this specific series. It's not going to be necessarily the
roster moving forward, but it was a really difficult day and understanding and
liking it are two different things."
Starter Alex Cobb, who ended the season on the injured list because of a finger
blister, is on the ALDS roster. He is a candidate to start Game 3, though Vogt
could choose to use his bullpen from start to finish.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
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