CLEVELAND, OH (92.3 THE FAN) - The American League Central Division Champion Cleveland Guardians continued to stack up the hardware. Emmanuel Clase, the Guardians closer has been awarded the 2022 American League Reliever of the Year.
Clase is the first Cleveland pitcher to take home the award, since its inception in 2014. The honor is named after Mariano Rivera and took the place of the Delivery Man of the Year Award, which has been presented since 2005.
In 2022, Clase was named an American League All-Star and to the All-MLB First team. Through 72.2 innings pitched Clase struckout 77 batters, and compiled 42 saves, the league leader. He posted a 1.36 ERA, 2.8 wins above replacement and 9.5 strikeouts per nine.
The Dominican born right-hander is just 24 years old and is signed through 2026. Clase in the 2022 postseason appeared in six innings, allowing no runs, two hits and striking out six.
The pitch repertoire for Clase includes a cutter and slider. His cutter averaged 99.5 miles per hour, the best in baseball.
The award was named during the MLB Winter Meetings which continue through Wednesday December 7th.
