The Guardians announced that they have selected to contract of left-hander Will Dion. The 40-man roster had a vacancy due to Rule 5 pick Peyton Pallette being designated for assignment a few days ago. To open an active roster spot for Dion, left-hander Logan Allen was optioned to Triple-A Columbus.
Dion, 26, was a ninth-round pick in the 2021 draft. As he climbed the minor league ladder, he worked primarily as a starter. Despite not having elite velocity, he was able to put up pretty good numbers through Double-A but struggled when he first reached Triple-A.
Here in 2026, he has been working exclusively out of the bullpen with very encouraging results. He has thrown 26 innings over 15 appearances, allowing 4.50 earned runs per nine. That ERA is obviously not going to knock any socks off but things look much better under the hood. Dion has struck out 34.6% of batters faced and only given out walks to 4.8% of opponents. The extra runs seem to have been caused by a .371 batting average on balls in play and 58% strand rate, which are both to the unlucky side. His 1.83 FIP on the year paints a much more flattering picture than his ERA.
As mentioned, Dion doesn’t light up the radar gun. He was averaging around 90 miles per hour with his four-seamer in 2024 and 2025. He has ticked up in a relief role this year but only to 91.2 mph. Statcast also credits him with a sinker, cutter, slider, curveball and changeup. Going into 2025, when he was still a starter, FanGraphs ranked him the #37 prospect in the club’s system. That report noted that Dion’s delivery resembled that of Clayton Kershaw. It also stated that Dion’s fastball can outperform the velo thanks to its riding life and that his secondaries are not outstanding but the change plays up thanks to Dion’s excellent command.
The Guards have had Erik Sabrowski and Tim Herrin as their two lefty relievers for most of the season. Allen was called up on Sunday to add a long relief option. Sabrowski hit the IL yesterday, then Allen was needed to cover four innings out of the bullpen in last night’s contest. With Sabrowski on the shelf and Allen unavailable for a few days, Dion has been added.
For now, Dion gives Cleveland a second lefty reliever alongside Herrin and will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. Both Herrin and Dion are optionable, should the Guards decide to make a switch later in the year, or if Sabrowski is able to get healthy relatively quickly.
Photo courtesy of Arianna Grainey, Imagn Images
