CHICAGO -- Slade Cecconi’s move from the Guardians’ starting rotation into their bullpen has quickly hit a speed bump.
Prior to Friday’s series opener against the White Sox, the Guardians placed Cecconi on the 15-day injured list due to right arm fatigue. Cleveland recalled right-hander Franco Aleman from Triple-A Columbus in a corresponding move.
Cecconi landed on the injured list almost immediately after his role abruptly changed this week. The Guardians moved him from the rotation to the bullpen after they acquired lefty starter Foster Griffin from the Nationals before the Trade Deadline on Monday. He fully embraced that change while expressing he wants to help the Guardians win any way he can.
However, even manager Stephen Vogt acknowledged Friday that the move to the bullpen likely played into Cecconi’s arm issue.
“I'm guessing it had to do with the two outings,” Vogt said Friday. “We put him in the bullpen right away. He hadn’t done that for a while. Those are things that we try to avoid as much as we can. But at the same time, we have to do it and he felt great going into the outing.”
Cecconi threw 43 pitches over 2 1/3 innings in Tuesday’s 6-2 loss to the Mets, which marked his first relief appearance since Sept. 11, 2024, while he was with Arizona. He then threw 30 pitches in relief in Thursday’s 13-6 loss to New York, in which he faced five batters and did not record an out.
Vogt said Cecconi alerted the Guardians’ medical staff of the arm issue once he came out of Thursday’s game. He underwent an MRI on Friday that revealed no structural damage, but he will be shut down from throwing for a few days.
Given that, an IL stint was appropriate to allow the issue to subside before he begins to build back up.
Cecconi has experience pitching in relief; 10 of his 27 appearances with the D-backs from 2023-24 were out of the bullpen. He forecast earlier this week that his workload would likely be a fluid situation with the swift nature of his role change.
Cecconi noted it would be an adjustment physically, but he felt ready going into it. Things obviously can change.
“My arm and body feel like they're in a really good place, and they take the absolute best care of us,” Cecconi said on Tuesday. “I'm going to be very communicative with both them, the staff, as to how I feel and what my availability looks like. As long as I can get my arm over my head, I'm probably gonna be out there if they ask me to.”
This marks Aleman’s third big league stint this season. In 14 appearances, the 26-year-old has a 3.77 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP with 17 strikeouts and five walks over 14 1/3 innings.
It has been an interesting week for Aleman. Cleveland optioned him to Columbus on Tuesday to make space for Griffin on the active roster. It has been a winding few days, but Aleman noted his first option to Columbus this season (on May 13) gave him good perspective.
He also is trying to keep a good mindset for his wife, Daniela, who is pregnant and expecting in September.
“The first [option] was a great learning lesson,” Aleman said. “This time around I've been really strong for my wife and trying to keep myself in the best state of mind to help the team just in case this did happen. Here I am."
Before this season, Aleman had never pitched on back-to-back days during his professional career. He said he only did it once in college, while he was at the University of Florida. He’s done it twice this season (July 18-19 and July 28-29 with the Guardians), and is continuing to adjust to the physical demands of the big leagues.
“I think that's been the hardest adjustment, physically,” Aleman said. “My teammates are so great. Any adversity, any little things I go through, or new things that I go through, I have a lot of great people to ask for help, and they're even there for me before I even ask for help.”