CLEVELAND -- The entrance video played on Progressive Field¡¯s Jumbotron above the left-field bleachers on Saturday, as Emmanuel Clase jogged in from the Guardians¡¯ bullpen. It was a familiar scene with one notable difference.
Clase¡¯s appearance in the Guardians¡¯ 5-4 win over the Red Sox in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader came in the eighth inning. He entered with Cleveland holding that same one-run lead and held it with a 14-pitch, 1-2-3 inning. Right-hander Cade Smith pitched the ninth and recorded his third save of the season.
The Guardians and Red Sox split the doubleheader, with Boston winning 7-3 in the nightcap, despite Jhonkensy Noel hitting his first homer of the year. Starter Doug Nikhazy made his MLB debut, but allowed six runs and six walks in just three innings.
Saturday marked Clase¡¯s first appearance since the series finale against the Pirates on Sunday. Manager Stephen Vogt noted on Wednesday that Clase felt some right shoulder discomfort after that outing, in which he threw 30 pitches and suffered his second blown save of the season.
Given the long layoff, the Guardians looked for a spot on Saturday where Clase could get back in the swing of things. Vogt relayed that plan to the right-hander before the twin-bill opener.
¡°I said, ¡®Hey, it¡¯s been five days,¡¯¡± Vogt said. ¡°¡®[You] didn¡¯t go on a rehab [assignment]. We don¡¯t want to put you on the IL; we want to keep you active. Probably look for a little lower leverage just to get you back on your feet.¡¯
¡°And he was great with it. That¡¯s the teammate he is. He¡¯ll be right back in that closer role.¡±
Clase said Saturday that he informed the Guardians of his shoulder discomfort after Sunday¡¯s outing in Pittsburgh, where he allowed three runs on four hits and one walk in the ninth inning. But he also noted that he ¡°had a little discomfort¡± during Cleveland¡¯s series from March 31-April 2 in San Diego, but he was able to pitch through it.
¡°I felt like, after Pittsburgh, I needed to say something,¡± Clase said through interpreter Agustin Rivero. ¡°The team was able to respond.¡±
On Saturday, Clase faced Kristian Campbell, Triston Casas and Blake Sabol -- Boston¡¯s sixth, seventh and eighth hitters. He struck out Campbell and Casas, then got Sabol to ground out to first baseman Carlos Santana.
Campbell put together an eight-pitch plate appearance against Clase, who struck him out with a 99.5 mph cutter on the outer edge of the plate. Casas fanned on a 98.8 mph cutter down in the zone.
¡°It looked like Emmanuel Clase to me,¡± catcher Austin Hedges said of the outing.
Clase has had a tough start to the 2025 season, recording a 7.15 ERA in 11 1/3 innings over 12 outings. Opponents are hitting .400 against him, though there¡¯s been some bad luck. His opponents¡¯ batting average on balls in play is a ridiculous .475. Last season, when Clase led the American League in saves for a third straight season and had a 0.61 ERA in 74 1/3 innings, his opponents' BABIP was .197. He finished third in AL Cy Young Award voting. Saturday¡¯s appearance was a much closer reflection of what we¡¯ve come accustomed to seeing from the right-hander.
¡°God willing, there¡¯s going to be many more outings like that,¡± Clase said. ¡°So, it feels good to be back to feeling like I¡¯m 100% -- like I¡¯ve felt in the past.¡±
Smith retired Rafael Devers (lineout), Alex Bregman (flyout) and Trevor Story (strikeout) to record his third save of the season. He picked up the save on Monday and Tuesday while Clase was down due to the shoulder issue.
His and Clase¡¯s performance on Saturday wrapped up an impressive win by the Guardians, who fell behind 3-0 in the first inning before quickly erasing the deficit. They scored four times off Boston starter Tanner Houck in the bottom of the first, when Steven Kwan and Nolan Jones hit back-to-back doubles, and Jos¨¦ Ram¨ªrez, Gabriel Arias and Daniel Schneemann added RBI singles.
¡°Our guys answer,¡± Vogt said. ¡°We talk about it -- it¡¯s our identity. When we get punched, we want to punch right back, and they did. That was huge to string a bunch of hits and baserunners together.¡±
Starter Ben Lively allowed four runs on six hits and three walks with four strikeouts in five innings. After surrendering a three-run homer to Wilyer Abreu in a 26-pitch first inning, Boston¡¯s only other run off him came on a Rafael Devers solo homer in the third. Lively threw a season-high 104 pitches.
¡°Doubleheader, beginning of 13 [games] in a row -- we needed him to give us at least five, and he did,¡± Vogt said. ¡°He was gritty. Kept us in the game, made pitches when he had to.¡±