'Second-best reliever in baseball': Rookie Cade Smith becomes key piece in Guardians pen

CLEVELAND — If you're doing something right, your opponent will probably let you know, one way or another. In Cade Smith's case, some opposing hitters made it pretty clear.

This spring training camp, Smith was an up-and-coming reliever who had yet to make his major league debut. He went on to have a great spring, striking out 12 hitters without a walk and allowing only two runs in nine innings of work.

Following one of his 1-2-3 innings with multiple strikeouts (there were a few), some opposing hitters told the Guardians that Smith needed to be in the majors — now.

"The biggest compliment any player can ever get is from the opposition, and I heard it was said by a couple of guys … when they faced Cade that he needed to get called up, he needed to go to another level," said Guardians pitching coach Carl Willis . "And, gosh darn, someone saying that about you, you're doing pretty well."

"Doing pretty well" would be an understatement to how important Smith has been to the Guardians bullpen, which has been baseball's best in 2024. Emmanuel Clase and his "Mariano-like" cutter , Hunter Gaddis and his "Don't think, just throw" approach and Tim Herrin have been key pieces to that bullpen. Smith, too, has been right in the center of it all.

"I don't know that words can describe it, and the consistency and quite frankly the domination," Willis said. "I don't know that anyone could have predicted it and certainly not this early on in his career."

Cade Smith stats show he's been an elite reliever in 2024

Just about any way the numbers are broken down, Smith has been one of the best relievers in baseball this season .

His 1.8 fWAR is second among all relievers.

Smith has the No. 1 FIP ( Fielding Independent Pitching , which is like ERA but aims to show how good a pitcher has been while taking defensive variables out of the equation) in the game at 1.46. Only two relievers have a FIP under 2.00: Smith and Oakland's Mason Miller.

Among relievers with at least 50 innings, he has the seventh-best ERA (2.17), with Clase and Gaddis sitting at one and two, and the second-best K/9 rate (12.50).

Austin Hedges calls Cade Smith the second-best reliever in baseball

Smith hasn't acted like a rookie trying to find his footing at the major league level. He was promoted — like those opposing hitters recommended — and has sprinted to some league-best numbers.

"I mean, he's probably the second-best reliever in baseball," said catcher Austin Hedges. "I think Clase is the best pitcher in baseball overall. I really, really believe that. And I think Cade Smith's the second-best reliever. That's as good as it gets out there. Guys have no idea how to adjust to it."

One element that has elevated the Guardians bullpen into elite territory hasn't simply been the effectiveness, it's been the flexibility. Other than Clase at the end of games, manager Stephen Vogt has been able to deploy Smith, Gaddis, Herrin, Sam Hentges and others at any point in games, rather than cementing any of them into concrete roles.

"A lot of guys, they need it to be the seventh, eighth, ninth inning to turn it on," Hedges said. "But him, he's like, 'Give me the ball anytime, and this is what you're going to get.' Rinse and repeat. And it's really, really special."

Considering Smith's season to this point, those opposing hitters back in Arizona in March were right, and he might be a major factor for the Guardians should they advance to October.

Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Threads at @ByRyanLewis .

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: 'Second-best reliever in baseball': Rookie Cade Smith becomes key piece in Guardians pen