CLEVELAND — Guardians closer Cade Smith fired a 98 mph four-seam fastball past the bat Tampa Bay Rays All-Star Yandy Diaz swung with his massive arms.
On Thursday, Oct. 15, Smith entered Game 3 of the American League Championship Series with a runner on third base and Diaz at the plate in the eighth inning at Progressive Field. Traded by Cleveland in 2018, Diaz had a golden opportunity to exact revenge with the Rays trailing by a run during a crucial moment. With two outs, Smith and Diaz battled for 10 pitches. Diaz rocketed the ninth one foul near the third-base line. Then he whiffed on the next pitch.
The antithesis of the Guardians' bat-flipping hero Petey Halpin in the fifth inning, Smith didn't celebrate. He simply made a beeline to the dugout, a perfect picture of stoicism. He returned for the ninth inning and completed a four-out save free of drama, ensuring the Guardians would defeat the Rays 3-2 to seize a 2-1 series lead in the best-of-seven ALCS.
The Guardians should have been crippled by losing three-time All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase in July 2025 to a betting scandal. They should not have been able to overcome Clase's downfall, especially because they rank last among MLB's 30 teams in payroll ($74 million).
Count the person who wrote this column among those who thought Clase and starting pitcher Luis Ortiz being banished from the Guardians as a result of an alleged pitch-rigging scheme would set the franchise back for several years.
Yet, the Guardians had Smith on their roster, and his rapid rise as a dominant closer rescued them. The organization has now done better in the playoffs than it ever did during Clase's career. He was with the 2024 Guardians who also advanced to the ALCS but lost 4-1 to the New York Yankees. The 2026 Guardians have already secured two ALCS victories, with Games 4 and 5 on deck in Cleveland.
The Guardians would not be two more wins away from the World Series without Smith.
"He does not waver. He does not change," Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. "... He's done the same routine [all season] and probably spring training as well. When you stay consistent with your routines, you get consistent performance."
The 27-year-old Smith's routine centers on his diligent work in the weight room and training room. Smith undoubtedly cares about nutrition, though he doesn't have a famous staple of his diet à la Tom Brady's avocado ice cream.
"We've talked about a [Wendy's] Baconator every here and there," Guardians relief pitcher Hunter Gaddis said.
Whatever Smith has done and continues to do is paying off. Smith and Rays closer Bryan Baker tied for the most 2026 regular-season saves in MLB with 41. An All-Star this season like Baker, Smith registered his second postseason save in Game 3 and has converted 13 consecutive save opportunities (playoffs and regular season combined).
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The pitching factory has a bullpen leader with a regimen worthy of a patent.
"Routine is something that this organization talks about a lot and not only just basically printing out a sheet of paper and giving it to guys, but finding an individualized routine for each guy," Smith said. "And so there's been a lot of learning that's gone into that as far as how do I make this my own and how do I develop it and find the things that I need to do and then also figure out how to balance it with the demands of pitching?
"There's times coming up where it's hard to trust the process. At this point, it's like I've seen the way that other guys, especially in 2024, how they trusted their process. And I understand that that's something that's honed over years, and so it's not something that I'm going to compromise on. So, it's of the utmost importance to me, the way that I feel like I get myself prepared to be the best version of myself for the guys in this clubhouse and for the fans."
Smith's habits have helped him evolve into a force. When he faced Diaz, David was nowhere to be found. It was Goliath versus Goliath.
"I also saw the pictures of his [Diaz's] arms yesterday, so I feel like that's all I could think of when he was swinging at those fastballs," Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan said. "He took some really good swings, even hit the splitter, which is a very low-slug pitch. And I think he went down the line at 104 [mph on a foul ball]. You knew there was going to be a really good battle, but it's just a testament to Cade on how much work he puts into it, his pitches, his locations."
Smith has appeared in seven of Cleveland’s eight playoff games, posting a 1.00 ERA and a 0.33 WHIP with 13 strikeouts in nine innings.
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Smith has faced 30 batters this postseason. The only other relievers in MLB playoff history to face at least 30 batters and post a WHIP below 0.33 in a single postseason are Boston’s Mike Timlin in 2003 (32 batters, 0.31 WHIP) and Toronto’s Dennis Lamp in 1985 (31 batters, 0.32 WHIP).
The eighth-inning encounter with Diaz is a reminder about the weapon Smith has become.
"That was a great at-bat," Smith said. "It's one of the things that makes baseball so exciting is that there's these kind of moments that it's really tooth and nail in the war of attrition."
The Guardians appeared destined to lose another war of attrition when Clase's MLB career met its demise. However, Smith had a different plan, and he's executing it.
Nate Ulrich is the sports columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal and a sports features writer. Nate can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cade Smith rescues Guardians, helps them regain ALCS lead vs. Rays. Opinion