Sam Hentges

After struggling during his rookie campaign, Hentges bounced back in a big way. The southpaw became a reliable bullpen arm for Cleveland, adding velocity on all four of his pitches while throwing more sinkers (26% pitch usage compared to 9% in 2021). This led to a 61.5% groundball rate that was one of the highest among relievers. Hentges' strikeout rate (29.4%) also spiked by eight percentage points, while also improving his walk and home run rates. He was especially dominant in the second half, producing a 36:5 K:BB ratio, 0.30 ERA and 0.57 WHIP over his final 29.2 innings. He didn't rack up a ton of holds (eight), but more can be expected in 2023 as Hentges is very clearly the top lefty in the Guardians bullpen. Don't completely dismiss the possibility of a return to the starting rotation, though, as the lefty was brought up as a starter in the minors.