Signing a two-year minor league deal with the Cleveland Guardians this past offseason, right-handed pitcher Ben Lively set himself up nicely to work his way back into the organization’s fold.
But Tommy John surgery has kept him off the bump for months.
Fortunately, on Saturday, July 18, manager Stephen Vogt confirmed that Lively is trending in the right direction and has begun progressing. Vogt also shared that he views the 34-year-old as someone the organization could use for the next seven years, if his health permits.
“Lively has made good progression,” Vogt said. “He has been up to 94, 95 [mph]. It was great to see him. He is such a big part of who we are. He is getting healthy… He wants to pitch. But we want to be smart. We want him to pitch for another seven years.
“…He was in town yesterday [Friday, July 17] for live batting practice. He will fly back to Arizona tonight.”
Pitching in Cleveland in 2024 and 2025, Lively posted a 15-12 overall record while on the mound across 38 starts. He owned a 3.68 ERA with 147 strikeouts, all while limiting the damage of free passes from opposing squads with just 64 walks given up.
Lively is never going to blow your socks off with break-neck speed, but he has good command and control, something Cleveland has valued.
He averaged fewer than three walks per nine innings in both campaigns, all while his strikeout numbers remained relatively average. He struck out seven per nine innings in 2024 and 5.8 per nine innings in 2025.
According to recent reports, though, Lively has said his fastball is now sitting in the mid-90s and has touched 95 mph at times. If that carries over to major league games, it would represent a significant jump from the 89.8 mph average on his four-seam fastball and the 90.4 mph average on his sinker and could result in more strikeouts.
While there is a challenge ahead for the Guardians to find a way to reintroduce him into the fold, with starters Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, Parker Messick, Slade Cecconi and Joey Cantillo all performing well this season, Lively could end up being a strong innings eater for Cleveland.
There’s also a world where he becomes a crafty, reliable middle-relief arm.
Whatever is in the future for Lively, for now, the focus is on getting him healthy and hopefully seeing him return before the year concludes. With a postseason race ahead for the Guardians, adding a familiar face back to the pitching staff could be a nice boost.
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