Cade Smith

12 september 2026

Secures 36th save

Smith earned his 36th save of the season after allowing one hit over a scoreless ninth inning in Friday's 5-2 win over the Twins. He did not record a strikeout or a walk.

Analyse

Smith was handed a three-run cushion after Cleveland broke a 2-2 tie in the top of the ninth, and he got the job done en route to his 36th save of the season -- the second-highest total in the AL behind Bryan Baker's MLB-leading 39. Smith allowed a leadoff single to Josh Bell in the top of the ninth but quickly erased it by getting Kody Clemens to ground into a double play, and then Smith induced a Royce Lewis groundball to finish the victory. Smith owns a 2.18 ERA as Cleveland's primary closer this season. He's converted eight of 10 save chances since the All-Star break, posting a 0.83 ERA and 0.92 WHIP with a 32:11 K:BB across 20 appearances in that span.