Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase is on verge of MLB history
By Max Weisman
As the Cleveland Guardians get closer to clinching their second AL Central title in three years, closer Emmanuel Clase is inching toward MLB history.
Clase, who leads the league in saves with 45, just needs to stay ahead of St. Louis Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley, who has 44 saves, and he'll accomplish something that not even Mariano Rivera did. If Clase holds the lead he has in saves, he'll lead the MLB in that category for the third straight year and would become the first closer to do so since saves became an official stat.
That's not all. Through 68-and-a-third innings pitched, Clase has allowed only five earned runs, equating to an earned run average of 0.66. That would be the fourth-lowest single-season ERA for a pitcher with more than 50 innings pitched in MLB history.
Emmanuel Clase is having a historic season
— MLB (@MLB) September 16, 2024
5 ER, 68.1 IP, 0.66 ERA
45 saves (leads MLB)
His 0.66 ERA would be the 4th lowest in a season of 50+ IP in MLB history
He is looking to become the first pitcher to lead MLB in saves 3 consecutive years since saves became an official… pic.twitter.com/Zm31tVYLzZ
The three-time All-Star has a 4-2 record this season but the Guardians record in games he's pitched is 60-7 and they've won seven in a row in which Clase has pitched. He has 61 strikeouts and batters are hitting just .158 off of him.
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It's a marked improvement from a year ago. Even though Clase led the league in saves in 2023 with 44, he had a 3-9 record, posting a 3.22 ERA and blowing 12 saves for the Guardians.
As the season winds down and the Guardians look to clinch the AL Central and make a deep run in the postseason, having a closer like Clase at their disposal is a huge bonus.
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