Cleveland Guardians' Cade Smith is considered one of the top-10 relievers in MLB heading into 2026.
The Cleveland Guardians owe a lot of their 2025 second-half success to Cade Smith.
The sophomore pitcher was one of the best arms in Cleveland’s bullpen, and his role dramatically changed after Emmanuel Clase was placed on leave mid-way through the season. Still, Cade thrived whenever he was on the mound, and he’s more than deserving to be considered one of the top relievers in the game.
That’s exactly where he was placed, MLB Network’s top-10 relief pitchers heading into 2026, with Smith coming in at No. 4 on their list, via “The Shredder.”
The three pitchers to finish ahead of Smith were Los Angeles Dodgers’ Edwin Diaz, San Diego Padres’ Mason Miller, and Boston Red Sox’s Ardoldis Chapman.
This model uses "rankings based on past performance, various offensive and defensive metrics (including both advanced statistics and traditional numbers) and analysis by the MLB Network research team, 'The Shredder' produces its list of the 10 best players at each position right now."
Jul 12, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Cade Smith (36) pitches during the eighth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn ImagesLast season in total, Smith logged a 2.93 ERA, a 1.95 FIP, and a 1.00 WHIP in 76 games.
After Clase’s absence, Cade became the closer and didn’t skip a beat. He made an appearance in 76 games, and recorded a 2.79 ERA, 0.72 WHIP, and 13 saves, wth a strikeout rate of 35.5 percent and a walk rate of 1.8 percent.
There has been a lot of controversy with some of these “The Shredder” lists. For example, the model does not rank Steven Kwan among the top 10 left fielders in the game. However, Cade’s position on the ranking feels fair.
Diaz, Miller, and Chapman are all established closers who are coming off incredible seasons in their own right compared to Smith’s stats.
That said, Cade will be Cleveland’s closer come Opening Day, which couldn’t be said a year ago. He’s in line to dramatically increase his value even more throughout the season, and could very well prove to be a better closer and pitcher than any of these three by the end of the season.
Nevertheless, the Guardians have one of the top relievers in the back of their bullpen, and that’s not something every team can say they have.
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