The Cleveland Guardians’ starting rotation has been a major point of contention this season. It’s been one of the worst units in baseball, and injuries have forced manager Stephen Vogt to experiment more than he would like.

Take last Saturday, for example.

Tanner Bibee was scheduled to start against the Baltimore Orioles, but shoulder soreness kept him on the sidelines. As a result, the Guardians turned to rookie Joey Cantillo, and Cantillo made his first start on July 28.

Cantillo pitched in the sixth inning against the Orioles, striking out three on six hits in 5.1 frames, striking out four and walking no one.

While Cantillo has recorded a 7.36 ERA in his first two major league appearances, Guardians manager Stephen Vogt sees potential in the young left-handed pitcher.

“I see a guy who is unwavering and unshaken,” Vogt said of Cantillo, per Michael Beaven of the Akron Beacon Journal. “He’s ready to make every shot and he’s competitive. I see that in Joey and I like having him on the field. I feel good. As for him, he’s got what it takes. He just hasn’t been deep in a game.”

Cleveland acquired Cantillo in a trade that sent then-star pitcher Mike Clevinger to the San Diego Padres in August 2020 (the Guardians also acquired Josh Naylor in the same deal).

Cantillo has been a bit of a mixed bag in the minor leagues. He went 4-3 with a 1.93 ERA while recording 87 punchouts in 60.2 innings at Double-A Akron in 2022.

Last season, Cantillo pitched in 26 games for Double-A and Triple-A Columbus with a 4.07 ERA.

The impressive part of Cantillo’s resume in the minor leagues is that he has a career-high 11.8 strikeouts per nine innings in the minor leagues.

The Guardians recalled Logan Allen from Triple-A and in-season signings Matthew Boyd and Alex Cobb are expected to debut soon, so we may not see much of Cantillo in 2024.

But perhaps Cantillo will take on a significant role in Cleveland in the future.