The Cleveland Guardians made several roster moves with their pitching staff ahead of their series opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Cleveland Guardians split their opening series with the Seattle Mariners, which definitely wasn’t the worst way for the team to start the series.
However, the Guardians were forced to use more pitchers than they probably would’ve liked, which led Cleveland to make some roster moves centered around the pitching staff ahead of their series opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Kolby Allard - Contract Selected From Triple-A
Kolby Allard is back with the Guardians' big league team, with his contract being selected from Columbus.
After spending the 2025 season with Cleveland and becoming a key depth piece in the bullpen, Allard waited until late in the offseason and just after Spring Training started to re-sign with the team. The 28-year-old initially signed a Minor League deal on February 2.
Allard was a first-round pick in the 2015 draft, but never panned out and didn't live up to that potential. Still, he had a solid season with the Guardians in 2025, logging a 2.63 ERA in 33 appearances. Allard even started to pitch bullpen games for Cleveland.
Adding Allard back into the mix gives the Guardians another multi-innings reliever moving forward.
Colin Holderman - Optioned To Triple-A
Allard is taking the spot of Colin Holderman in the bullpen as he was optioned to Triple-A on Monday.
Holderman was one of Cleveland’s key offseason bullpen additions, but his start to the 2026 season has not been great. He pitched in two games against the Mariners and gave up two earned runs on three hits, while issuing two walks and striking out three batters.
Holderman is coming off a 2025 season in which he suffered similar issues in the small sample size in Seattle. Perhaps he could be another option for Cleveland’s bullpen down the line, but right now, the Guardians need some fresh arms.
Doug Nikhazy - Designated For Assignment
The Guardians had to create a spot on the 40-man roster in order to add Allard back into the bullpen. They did that by designating LHP Doug Nikhazy for assignment.
Nikhazy was a second-round pick of Cleveland in 2021 and owns a Minor League career ERA of 4.13 and a 1.41 WHIP. He finally made his big-league debut in 2025, but gave up six earned runs in 4.0 innings of work.
It’ll be interesting to see what Nikhazy’s future holds, and if there is another team interested in taking a chance on the former top pitching prospect.
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