r/ClevelandGuardians • u/clegay15 Pride C • 10h ago
Discussion #43
The string of mid-season acquisitions has presented me with a quandary. I typically use uniform numbers to write more about players. But I feel rushed to get to some players, and the parallels are not always there. For instance Foster Griffin wears #22, and the player who wore 22 the longest for Cleveland is Jason Kipnis. Not a great parallel between the two. Nathaniel Lowe wears 46, which is a little easier, but still a lot of work investigating for a fast article.
Shawn Armstrong wears a number I already touched on a few years ago, providing me some space to write about a player who is becoming more vital to our club as the year goes on, and with some recent big innings I wanted to honor him before he likely leaves after the World Series.
Cleveland Players Who Wore 43: 24
Player Who Wore 23 the Longest: Scott Bailes & Aaron Civale
The following is recycled from my previous article on #43 focusing on Jhonkensy Noel
Usually when I count out who wore a number the longest I at least recognize the name, if not much about the career. This is the first time I was truly stumped: who the heck is Scott Bailes? Well, answer: a swing man for the lowly 1986-89 Cleveland Indians. Drafted first by the Rangers, and then by the Pirates, Scott wound up in Cleveland as part of the famous Johnnie LeMaster deal (I’ll forgive you for not knowing the name).
Bailes arrived in Cleveland to little fanfare. The news of his acquisition barely made the Plain Dealer. Paul Hoynes only briefly mentioned the acquisition on July 4th, 1985 as part of a roundup. The Indians believed in him and after a solid spring he made the club in ‘86 and was…fine. Serviceable. In Cleveland’s defense, it’s not like they had many other players to throw out for that team. The 1985 Indians were one of the worst teams in the league, finishing 7th in the AL East.
Bailes promptly blew a save in the second game of the season. In the home opener, Bailes was little better, giving up 2 runs while only recording an out. He made his first start on April 13th and showed some promise. He went 5 ⅓ innings against the Tigers and settled in. He struck out Kirk Gibson and Darrell Evans and, as Paul Hoynes wrote: “stopped overthrowing and started getting people out.” It was not a masterpiece by any stretch, but 1 run in 5 ⅓ is a solid start for a rookie.
Sadly, Bailes never found much of a groove. He never found a consistent role as either a starter or a reliever, but Cleveland loved Bailes and used him frequently. Bill Linvingston, to say the least, was skeptical:
“He has not been that bad in his last six outings, getting three victories and a save. But for a reliever to be tied for third in the league in victories, as is Bailes, is not exactly a neon sign of encouragement. It indicates that too many inherited runs are scoring.”
Scott Bailes did record a shutout victory for the Indians in 1988 during the home opener. It was shocking at the time, and also the last time a Cleveland pitcher tossed a complete game in a home opener. “Mostly I went with fastballs” said Bailes, “Last year I would never have done that. This year all the pitchers have confidence in our defense and we can go out and challenge hitters.” Bailes did pitch better in 1989, but still remained solidly average.
The Indians tried a lot of things, including sending him to a psychologist to help him focus on the mound before the 1989 season (which didn’t work). They traded him to California in 1989. In retirement Bailes found joy in his family, and turned down chances to return to the game. He raised two daughters, found success in business, and enjoyed a nice 9 year career in the Majors.
“I feel that aside from winning the lottery, I am the luckiest guy I know,” he said to the Plain Dealer in 2002, after he retired.
Shawn Armstrong
I was not excited when the Shawn Armstrong signing was announced on December 20th. I held no animosity towards Armstrong, as I said at the time he was a fine arm, and I trust this franchise to develop pitching. But Armstrong felt like a re-tread arm on a team that desperately needed offense.
I underestimated Armstrong.
The Indians drafted Shawn Armstrong in 2011, and developed him, he made his debut for Cleveland in 2015. Few noticed him, he failed to make the 2016 or 2017 postseason rosters (granted: those were excellent bullpens), although Shawn was solid in 39 games posting a 3.53 ERA. Cleveland flipped him to Seattle for International Bonus money starting Shawn’s itinerant career. This is an increasingly common life for solid relievers: find a home somewhere, get shuffled to another team (often at a trade deadline deal), before it happens again.
Armstrong spent time in Seattle, Baltimore, Tampa Bay, Texas, Miami and Chicago before finally returning to Cleveland before his career. He was often good (like last year: 2.31 ERA in 71 appearances), often mediocre (4.86 ERA for 3 teams, and 57 appearances in 2024), and made an impact at every organization. Shawn was good enough to make postseason rosters, pitching for Tampa in 2022 against Cleveland, and again the next year.
This kind of player is now absurdly common across baseball, and Cleveland signs or develops one every year. Last year it was Matt Festa who we bought off the Rangers. In 2024 it was Pedro Avila. In 2021 it was Blake Parker (or Bryan Shaw). Oliver Perez filled this role multiple times. In 2016 Dan Otero found his way on the team and pitched meaningful innings for us. With starters throwing fewer and fewer innings there are simply a lot more veteran relievers floating around, pitching meaningful innings that used to go to starting pitchers.
Now 35: Armstrong is still plugging away, and for the regular season he’s mostly been mediocre. He posted a 4.58 ERA in 41 games in Cleveland and hit the Injured List on July 25th, later transferred to the 60-Day IL. I suspect most fans forgot the Guardians signed him in the first place, and frankly: I was one of them. But Armstrong quietly came back at the end of September, made 3 scoreless appearances and found his way onto the postseason roster: and he has made a difference!
Shawn Armstrong has pitched 4 times this postseason, giving up no runs. He recorded 4 outs in Game 2 of the ALDS with the Guardians only down a runIn Game 3 he entered the game to relieve Foster Griffin with a runner on second and only one out. That runner did not score. He entered again in Game 4, cleaning up another mess and got another 5 crucial outs. When the page turned to the ALCS he came on in Game 2 and threw 2 innings, letting Stephen Vogt rest his overworked arms.
This is a perfect middle relief arm. Reliable, he can get the strikeout, and is not rattled by the big moment. It’s an underappreciated skillset, and one often missed by fans. But Shawn Armstrong was not a heralded signing in the beginning of the year, struggled with health for much of the season, and now after coming back is putting himself on the line for the club. He is yet another veteran brought in by the Guardians alongside Jo Adell, Foster Griffin and Nathaniel Lowe who is quietly making a difference alongside a crop of youngsters who form the core of this team.
That’s not sexy, but it’s vital. At 35: Shawn Armstrong has found a way to remain relevant and contribute for a team trying to return to the World Series for the first time since 2016. Coincidentally: that was around when Armstrong was last on a Cleveland club. A nice full circle for a journeyman pitcher who continues to find ways to push his career.
Maybe someday he will look back at this like Scott Bailes and consider himself lucky.
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u/CarnivorousLuggage 9h ago
Bailes is a great guy! Very active in the team's alumni network. He did color commentary on the radio for the series in Colorado this year.
You left out the most interesting part of his career: he retired after the 1994 season, was out of the game for two years, then came back and pitched for Texas for two more seasons before hanging up the spikes for good.
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u/BoosherCacow I am done with clever flairs 8h ago
Oh my GOD I haven't heard or read that name in ages. I wish my dad was still alive just so I could walk up to him, lock eyes and simply say: "SCOTT BAILES" simply so he could say what he always did when they started or brought him out of the pen:
"Scott Bailes us out of a win!" Dad was not a fan and they used him all the time. Not a great pitcher but I liked him.