Hawaii's Closer Is Locking Down Wins for Cleveland
Cade Smith is making a case for the most dominant stretch of any Hawaii alum in recent MLB memory. The Guardians closer posted a 1.95 ERA heading into the final week of the regular season, and his work over the Sept. 20–26 stretch was a microcosm of everything Cleveland is counting on for October.
Smith opened the week on Sunday, Sept. 20, with 1.1 innings and three strikeouts in a 1-0 win over the Athletics — a game in which he and starter Gavin Williams combined to shut out Oakland on the strength of a single run. From there, Smith kept piling up the zeros. He struck out one across a clean inning in a 3-2 victory over Boston on Sept. 22, then came back Thursday, Sept. 24, to punch out three more in a full inning of work against the Red Sox — where he also hit a personal milestone, per Heavy Sports. By Saturday, Sept. 26, his ERA had ticked down to 1.95 after another appearance against Kansas City in an 11-5 Guardians rout.
That ERA didn't start the week at 1.95 — it got there. Smith's Sept. 20 appearance had him sitting at 2.02 before successive outings chipped it lower, a trajectory that tells the real story: he's not just sustaining dominance, he's improving down the stretch when playoff positioning matters most. According to Sports Illustrated, the Guardians view Smith as "another reliable weapon" for the postseason, and the numbers back that framing without needing to dress it up.
For Rainbow Warriors fans, the narrative here is straightforward and worth savoring. Smith is a late-round product of a program that doesn't churn out MLB closers on the regular, and he's performing at a level that would make him one of the better high-leverage arms in any bullpen in baseball right now.
Rojas Hangs In for Kansas City
Josh Rojas had a quieter week for a Royals team that ran into Cleveland's buzz-saw on Saturday, losing 11-5. The Hawaii product went into that game hitting .229 on the season — down from .238 after a Sept. 22 RBI appearance against the White Sox, a 14-11 Kansas City loss in a game that showcased neither team's best defense. Rojas hasn't been a headline-maker this September, but he's remained a utility presence in a Royals lineup still fighting to define its roster identity heading into the offseason.
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