Jakob Junis deserves more recognition for his role in the Cleveland Guardians’ bullpen.
The Cleveland Guardians' success over the last month has been built on their incredible pitching.
The bullpen, led by Cade Smith and Hunter Gaddis, was expected to be solid heading into the season, and the rotation has taken some massive steps forward, too, especially Gavin Williams.
However, there is one pitcher on Cleveland’s roster that definitely deserves some more recognition for what they’ve done to help the Guardians get back into a playoff spot heading into the final week of the season: Jakob Junis.
Junis has not had a clear role with the team. He’s been a Swiss Army Knife for the Guardians in whatever scenario they ask him to take the mound in, and the veteran has been phenomenal no matter what citation he’s pitching in, especially over the last two months.
In the right-hander's last 15 games, he has a 1.66 ERA and a 0.74 WHIP and is averaging just under one strikeout per inning during that stretch.
Sep 16, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor (23) and pitcher Jakob Junis (16) celebrate after defeating the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn ImagesJunis’ contributions were also one of the key reasons Cleveland went 6-1 on their last road trip to bring them within one game of the Detroit Tigers heading into the final week of the season.
He pitched 3.2 innings over three games last week, and only gave one run, but also struck out six of the 12 batters he faced.
Junis had a difficult month of May, which skewed some of his season's stats in the wrong direction. However, the veteran has been everything the team could have asked for when they signed him as a free agent last offseason.
The 33-year-old has pitched successfully in a variety of roles, and Cleveland's skipper has taken notice of everything he's done on the mound.
“[Junis] has really been lights out since the first month of the year,” said Stephen Vogt after Junis threw 2.0 shutout innings in Cleveland’s victory last Friday. “Jakob Junis has been super valuable for us all year long. Whatever role, it’s been fun to watch him.”
Junis isn’t going to be on the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning in a save situation, but that shouldn’t take away from how productive he’s been for the Guardians this season.
The reliever has been a key piece to Cleveland’s dominant bullpen, and he deserves more credit than he’s getting right now.