Guardians option starting pitcher to minor leagues, making room for recent trade acquisition

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Guardians starting pitcher Logan Allen is headed to Triple-A Columbus a day after the left-hander recorded a season-high nine strikeouts in Cleveland’s 4-2 victory over the Giants at Progressive Field.

Cleveland tendered Allen, 25, a contract extension before Sunday’s series finale. The move frees up a spot on the 26-man roster and in the starting rotation for right-hander Spencer Howard, acquired in a trade with San Francisco on Friday. Howard, 27, was 1-1 with a 5.63 ERA in seven appearances, including two starts, for the Giants this season.

In 18 starts for the Guardians, Allen went 8-4 with a 5.67 ERA and 1.546 WHIP in 87 1/3 innings. He struck out 76 batters and walked 35. Last season, Allen went 7-8 in 24 starts with a 112 ERA+. Although he tied Ben Lively for the team’s wins title this year, Allen’s ERA+ was 29 percent below the league average of 71.

Manager Stephen Vogt said telling Allen he was being fired was a difficult conversation to have, especially since the left-hander has played a significant role in the club’s success so far this year.

“It’s an opportunity for Logan to get back on the field and get some consistency,” Vogt said. “We’ve seen it when he has an outing where he’s on the field, he’s effective, he’s filling the strike zone, he’s pitching six innings. Then he has another one where he’s struggling, he’s pitching a lot, he’s struggling to find the strike zone and he can’t get as far.”

The key for Allen will be to work on improving his delivery. Vogt said the organization felt it was the right time for him to take a step back and regroup.

“He understands he has to go deeper in games and be more consistent in his throws,” Vogt said. “He’s recognized that and we know he’s going to work extremely hard and diligently to get back.”

Guardians vs Royals — Logan Allen #41 of the Cleveland Guardians leaves the game in the fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on June 30, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)Getty Images

Allen becomes the second member of the Opening Day starting rotation to be sent down in the past week, joining Triston McKenzie who was sent to Columbus last week.

“As we talked about with Triston, our best team is the one with those two guys at their best in our rotation,” Vogt said.

The club is still working on exactly where and when Howard will make his Guardians debut.

“Spencer just arrived in the building today, so we haven’t had a chance to sit down with him yet because of the short day today,” Vogt said. “We should know more in the next few days about where Spencer will be.”

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