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Guardians trade relief pitcher Paul Sewald to Detroit Tigers ahead of MLB trade deadline
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- Guardians trade relief pitcher Paul Sewald to Detroit Tigers ahead of MLB trade deadline
CLEVELAND — The Guardians continue to make moves ahead of the 2025 MLB trade deadline.
Shortly after trading former Cy Young winner Shane Bieber to the Toronto Blue Jays , the team shipped relief pitcher Paul Sewald to the Detroit Tigers for a player to be named later or cash considerations. The club has confirmed the trade.
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It's an usual inter-division trade, though teams aren't as cautious about these types of deals as they had been in the distant past. Sewald is currently on the injured list with a shoulder injury and likely won't be able to join the Tigers bullpen for a few weeks.
This past offseason, the Guardians signed Sewald to a one-year deal that included a mutual option for 2026. Sewald pitched only 15 1/3 innings with Cleveland, posting a 4.70 ERA.
The expectations for how the Guardians might handle this trade deadline kept evolving over the last few weeks.
Their 10-game skid in which the offense had to fight, scratch and claw for every run threatened to tip them toward sellers, increasing the chance that a few players around the roster could be moved with an eye on 2026.
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But after that time, the Guardians turned into the hottest team in the American League , winning 11 of their next 13 games, including a 5-1 mark to open the second half of the season. That again put them in the middle of the AL Wild Card race and on the doorstep of being in position for a playoff spot.
The Guardians were then delivered a gut-punch to their playoff chances when Emmanuel Clase joined Luis Ortiz on paid leave through at least Aug. 31 as part of Major League Baseball's gambling investigation.
It left the Guardians front office with a wide variety of possible paths with how to construct the roster. Last year, the Guardians added outfielder Lane Thomas and starting pitcher Alex Cobb at the deadline in addition to signing starter Matthew Boyd around the same time.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Paul Sewald traded as Guardians send reliever to Detroit Tigers
