The Guardians added Lively to their ALCS roster Tuesday.
He's taking the roster spot vacated by Alex Cobb, who is now out for the remainder of the postseason with a back injury. Lively hasn't made an appearance since his final start of the regular season back on Sept. 28, but he's a candidate to make a start during the ALCS in Cobb's place.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Left off ALDS roster
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Lively is not included on the Guardians' roster for the American League Division Series versus Detroit.
Lively was a key part of Cleveland's rotation during the regular season, posting a 3.81 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 118:49 K:BB over 151 innings across 29 starts while going 13-10. He had a few poor starts near the end of the campaign and logged a 4.53 ERA along with a 1.39 WHIP over the final two months, which may have played a part in the decision to leave him off roster for the ALDS. The starting pitchers on Cleveland's ALDS roster include Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams, Matthew Boyd and Alex Cobb (finger).
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Tagged with 10th loss
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Lively (13-10) took the loss Saturday against the Astros, allowing four runs (two earned) on five hits and four walks while striking out four over four innings.
Lively didn't have his best stuff for his final regular-season start as the four walks tied a season high. It's a tough ending for what has otherwise been a great season for the 32-year-old. Lively heads into the playoffs with a 3.81 ERA over 151 innings in his first season with the Guardians.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Sharp in 13th win
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Lively (13-9) picked up the win Friday, allowing one run on three hits and a walk over five innings in a 5-1 victory over the Cardinals. He struck out two.
The right-hander looked like he was running out of gas in late August as he set a new career high in innings pitched, but Lively has found a second wind. Over his last three starts, he's given up just one run in 12 innings, and he's won back-to-back outings. On the season, Lively's posted a 3.80 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 114:45 K:BB through 147 innings. With the Guardians on the cusp of clinching the AL Central title, the team could shuffle its rotation ahead of the playoffs, but Lively currently lines up to make his final start of the regular season at home next weekend against the Astros.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Starting Tuesday's game
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Lively will start Tuesday's game against the White Sox, Joe Noga of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Joey Cantillo started Monday in what had been Lively's turn, as the Guardians wanted to give Lively some extra rest after he allowed 10 runs over his previous two outings. He'll have a good opportunity to bounce back Tuesday against the feeble White Sox offense.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Clobbered in no-decision
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Lively did not factor into the decision in Friday's 10-8 win against Pittsburgh, allowing six runs on nine hits and one walk over 4.1 innings. He struck out three.
The Cleveland righty pitched fewer than five innings for just the fourth time this season, as he allowed a season-worst nine hits. All six Pittsburgh runs came in the fifth inning, as Lively yielded six hits -- including for three extra bases -- on 27 pitches before being relieved by Pedro Avila. Lively has pitched to a 3.92 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 105:42 K:BB across 131 innings this season. He is scheduled to make his next outing on the road against the division-rival Royals.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Cruises to win Saturday
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Lively (11-8) allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and a walk while striking out four over 6.2 innings to earn the win over the Rangers on Saturday.
Lively snapped a three-start winless stretch, riding an explosion of offense from the Guardians to his first win since Aug. 1. He's posted quality starts in three of his five outings this month, allowing 14 runs (13 earned) across 27.1 innings. Lively is now at a 3.62 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 102:41 K:BB through 126.2 innings over 23 starts this year, which has been his best in the majors. His next start is expected to come at home versus the Pirates.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Shortest outing of season
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Lively did not factor into the decision Monday, allowing three runs on five hits and four walks over 3.2 innings against the Cubs. He struck out one.
Lively was touched up for a couple of homers and four walks for the second-consecutive start. While he never allowed the game to get out of hand, eventually paving the way for a comeback victory by the Guardians, he was pulled with two on and two out in the fourth and walked away with a no decision. It was the shortest outing of the season for Lively, who had made it into the fifth inning during each of his previous 20 starts. Despite the rough showing, the veteran righty is continuing to produce a career season, posting a 3.71 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 93 strikeouts over 114 innings. His next opportunity to toe the rubber is scheduled to take place in Milwaukee when the Guardians travel to take on the Brewers.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Falls to Arizona
Rotowire
Lively (10-7) took the loss Wednesday against the Diamondbacks in the opening game of a doubleheader, allowing four runs on four hits and four walks over five innings. He struck out two.
Lively struggled with command and control a bit Wednesday, issuing a season-high four walks. The Diamondbacks would ultimately make him pay with a pair of two-run homers in an eventual 7-3 Cleveland defeat. It's the first time in five starts that Lively's allowed more than two runs -- he'd posted a 2.78 ERA in his last four outings (22.2 innings) prior to Wednesday. Overall, the 32-year-old right-hander still sports a 3.59 ERA on the campaign with a 1.17 WHIP and 92:34 K:BB across 110.1 innings. Lively will look to rebound in his next outing, currently slated for early next week at home against the Cubs.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Fans seven in loss
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Lively (8-5) yielded two runs on three hits and two walks over 5.1 innings Sunday, striking out seven and taking a loss against the Rays.
Lively turned in a strong performance aside from serving up solo homers to Jose Siri and Brandon Lowe. The Rays threw a combined shutout and stuck Lively with the tough-luck loss. His seven punchouts matched a season best, and he's now hit that mark four times in 2024. Lively will begin the second half with a strong 3.58 ERA and 78:25 K:BB through 16 starts. In eight outings since the start of June, he's registered a 4.40 ERA.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Gives up six runs in no-decision
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Lively didn't factor into the decision in Tuesday's 9-8 extra-inning win over the Tigers, giving up six runs on seven hits, a walk and four strikeouts over 5.1 innings.
Lively was given a healthy 6-0 lead on Tuesday but allowed a season-high six runs of his own. The 32-year-old has now given up multiple runs in five straight starts and has seen his ERA go from 2.59 to 3.59 over his last 27 innings. The no-decision snapped a streak of 11 straight appearances in which he factored in the decision, as he's accumulated a solid 8-4 record in 15 starts this season. Lively is scheduled for one more start prior to the All-Star break, Sunday against the Rays.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Takes tough loss
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Lively (7-4) took the loss against the Royals on Thursday, allowing two runs on six hits and one walk over six innings while striking out five.
Lively was sharp for most of the contest and didn't allow a runner to reach second base until the fifth inning, when Nick Loftin walked and then advanced on a steal. Unfortunately for Lively, his luck would run out in the following frame after he surrendered back-to-back triples, eventually leading to two runs coming home for Kansas City. The outing marked Lively's first quality start this month, but he's allowed two or fewer runs in six of his last seven outings. He's also lost two of his last three starts after previously winning five straight.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Earns seventh win
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Lively (7-3) allowed two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four over 5.2 innings to earn the win over the Blue Jays on Saturday.
Lively bounced back from his shortest start of the year by getting back into the win column. He hasn't struck out more than five batters in any of his last five outings, but he's generally been good at limiting damage, as he's given up two or fewer runs in nine of his 12 starts. The right-hander is at a 3.03 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 56:20 K:BB through 65.1 innings this season, though he's also been tagged for 10 home runs, including two in Saturday's start. Lively is projected to make his next appearance at Kansas City.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Should make next start
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Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said Tuesday that Lively (undisclosed) has checked out fine and is expected to make his next turn through the rotation, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
The 32-year-old experienced some unspecified tightness during his start in Miami over the weekend, which resulted in him being lifted after five scoreless innings. Lively hasn't had any issues over the past couple days, putting him on track to start this weekend in Toronto. Cleveland should confirm its pitching plans later in the week.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Solid in fourth straight win
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Lively (5-2) earned the win against the Nationals on Saturday, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk with four strikeouts over 5.2 innings.
Lively fired three scoreless frames before allowing two runs in the fourth inning, and he left the game just shy of a quality start after allowing a two-out single to Lane Thomas in the sixth. This was Lively's fourth win in as many games, and he has not allowed more than three runs in any of his nine starts this season. Lively will take a 2.84 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 47:15 K:BB into a road matchup against the Marlins next weekend.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Fans seven in victory
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Lively (3-2) earned the win over the Mets on Monday, allowing one run on six hits and no walks while striking out seven batters over 5.2 innings.
The only run Lively allowed in the outing came via a Tomas Nido solo homer in the third inning. Lively was otherwise excellent, matching a season high with seven punchouts and falling one out shy of recording a quality start. The right-hander is in the midst of the best season of his career, posting a 2.84 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 38:12 K:BB over 38 innings. Prior to this season Lively owned a 5.05 ERA across 208.2 career frames.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Hangs tough but takes loss
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Lively (1-2) took the loss against the White Sox on Thursday, allowing three runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out two batters over 5.2 innings.
It appeared Lively could be in for a short outing after giving up three runs on five hits (including three doubles) and a walk over his first two frames, but the right-hander recovered to go 5.2 innings without giving up another run. The three runs were a season high, which speaks to how well Lively has pitched through five appearances on the season. He holds a 2.63 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 26:9 K:BB across 27.1 innings.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Activated ahead of start
Rotowire
The Guardians reinstated Lively (illness) from the 15-day injured list ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday versus the Red Sox in Boston.
Cleveland moved reliever Eli Morgan (shoulder) to the 15-day IL in a corresponding move to make room for Lively, who will be making his Guardians debut Wednesday. Lively got stretched out to 5.1 innings and 55 pitches in his second and final rehab start with Triple-A Columbus last week, so he could have some minor workload restrictions in place in his return from the IL. With Shane Bieber (elbow) out for the season and Xzavion Curry getting optioned to Triple-A following a spot start Monday, Lively could be in line to make multiple turns through the Cleveland rotation until Gavin Williams (elbow) is ready to return from the IL.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Confirmed to start Wednesday
Rotowire
The Guardians plan to reinstate Lively (illness) from the 15-day injured list to start Wednesday's game in Boston, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
The season-ending injury to Shane Bieber (elbow), along with a doubleheader with the Yankees on Saturday, opened up two spots in Cleveland's temporary six-man rotation, and Xzavion Curry (illness) -- who will be activated from the IL to start Monday -- and Lively will be called upon to fill the voids. The Guardians are expected to condense their rotation to five men by the end of the week, however, so how Curry and Lively perform against the Red Sox will likely determine which of the two remains in a starting role moving forward. Lively wrapped up his two-start rehab assignment at Triple-A Columbus by covering 5.1 innings and 55 pitches this past Tuesday, so he should face only light workload restrictions in Boston for what will be his season debut with the big club.
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Guardians' Ben Lively: Begins rehab assignment
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Lively (illness) allowed a hit and struck out three without walking a batter over three scoreless innings in his rehab start versus Triple-A Omaha on Thursday.
Lively began the season on the 15-day injured list, but he was solid in his first rehab appearance. The right-hander was in contention for a rotation spot during spring training prior to coming down with a respiratory virus. It's unclear what his role will be with the major-league team once he's activated -- that will likely depend on Carlos Carrasco's performance as the Guardians' fifth starter and the timeline for the return of Gavin Williams (elbow).
