Cleveland entered this week with the status of two key players uncertain, but the Guardians received good news going into their weekend series against the Colorado Rockies in Denver.
Jo Adell returned Thursday from a sore knee, and Chase DeLauter was back in the lineup Friday after missing three games with a hamstring injury.
Adell had two hits and DeLauter singled and walked in Cleveland’s 9-1 win over Colorado on Friday night, and the Guardians can capture the three-game series when the teams square off Saturday night.
Cleveland will send Tanner Bibee (4-13, 4.01 ERA) to the mound to oppose rookie Gabriel Hughes (0-4, 6.69).
DeLauter tweaked his hamstring Sunday in a 5-0 loss to San Diego and sat out the three-game series vs. San Francisco. He bounced back well enough to play right field in spacious Coors Field.
“Great job by Chase communicating that he was feeling it, and the medical staff to identify it and get him three days later to be ready to play,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “So I’m really glad that both those guys are back in there.
“He (DeLauter) has done a great job of staying in the training room, in the weight room, making sure he’s preparing himself. But we’ve DH’d him a lot. When he has a heavy day in the field, we’re having him DH the next day.”
Bibee, meanwhile, will face the Rockies for the second time in his career and for the first time in Colorado. The right-hander made his major league debut against the Rockies on April 26, 2023, and held them to one run over 5 2/3 innings to get his first big-league win.
Hughes, however, has never faced Cleveland and still is seeking his first major league victory. He made a solid debut in a relief appearance against San Francisco on July 3 and finished that month 0-3.
The right-hander has struggled in August, posting a 12.83 ERA in three outings. He has allowed seven earned runs in each of his last two starts and lasted just four innings both times.
Colorado entered the weekend series following a tough three-game sweep by the Los Angeles Dodgers, but there were positives that came from the losses. Reliever Jaden Hill returned Wednesday from a nearly two-month absence and threw a scoreless inning, and Mickey Moniak continues to have a strong second season with the Rockies.
His home run Wednesday sent the game to extra innings and was his 20th of the season. He set a career high in homers with 24 last season and is on pace to surpass that total with five weeks and 34 games left.
“That’s just what Mick has done for us since he’s got here (in 2025), and he’s such an enormous part of what we do,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said. “I’m just proud of him.”
Friday night, Colorado saw the return of Kyle Karros from the seven-day concussion injured list, and the third baseman singled and walked. Shortstop Ezequiel Tovar left in the fourth inning due to an illness. His playing status is considered day-to-day.
–Field Level Media
