Xzavion Curry saves Guardians, makes case for opportunities in 2023
Xzavion Curry had a sudden change of plans not long before the team broke camp for the 2023 season. And less than a week in, he’s already rewarded that decision.
In Monday night’s comeback win over the Oakland A’s in extra innings, the Guardians offense was led by Jose Ramirez, who came through with key plays in both the eighth and 10th innings. But those late-night heroics never have a chance to matter without Xzavion Curry, who saved the bullpen some extra stress and kept the Guardians within striking distance.
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Monday night’s starter, Zach Plesac, was hit hard for six earned runs. He only recorded three outs. Quickly, the Guardians were down 6-2 and seemingly needing a length night from the bullpen.
Plesac’s quick exit led to Curry, who originally wasn’t even supposed to be on the Opening Day roster. Curry was slated to remain stretched out as a starting pitcher in Triple-A Columbus while Hunter Gaddis broke camp in the Guardians major league bullpen. Those plans were thrown out the window when Triston McKenzie went down with a teres major muscle strain that could have him sidelined for two months.
That pushed Gaddis to the rotation and Curry into that spot in the bullpen. Fast forward to Monday night, and Curry was suddenly on the mound for a de-facto start that he wasn’t expecting to make. But he delivered, allowing two runs on three hits in five innings of work. Without that outing, it’s possible none of what happened after the fact, as the Guardians took the lead in the eighth, lost it in the ninth and then won it in the 10th, would have mattered.
“He competed,” manager Terry Francona told reporters in Oakland, Calif. “I mean, fortunately he got some really [early-count] outs because we were up against it. Me and Carl [Willis] were looking at it, this early in the year, we’re five games into the season and you’re starting to thin, ‘OK, who can we pitch, who can we not pitch?’ But he got us deep enough.”
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Curry is an intriguing member of the Guardians 40-man roster who made his MLB debut last year, pitching 9 1/3 innings. He’s one of several younger pitchers the Guardians could get some usage out of when needed in 2023, along with Gaddis, Konnor Pilkington, Cody Morris (when healthy), Peyton Battenfield, Logan Allen and others. That group has created a bit of a log jam in Triple-A, and that’s before considering some of the club’s top pitching prospects — Daniel Espino, Gavin Williams and Tanner Bibee.
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The Guardians rotation was thrown into some short-term uncertainty to an extent via McKenzie’s injury. With him unavailable, they now have to piece together that spot in the rotation for potentially two months. The first crack is going to Gaddis, who gave up four runs in 3 2/3 innings in his season debut. And as pitchers position themselves for opportunities, there’s also no guarantee the Guardians make it through the trade deadline without dealing a starting pitcher, thus opening up a spot.
One outing is, after all, just one outing and likely won’t alter any plans. But if there’s a way for Curry to make his case for innings in 2023, saving a start-gone-off-the-rails that leads to a comeback win is a positive first step. At the very least, the Guardians’ late-spring decision to carry Curry in the bullpen has already been worth a win.
Ryan Lewis can be reached at [email protected]. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.
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