​CLEVELAND, OHIO – JULY 02: Daniel Espino #41 of the Cleveland Guardians pitches in the sixth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field on July 02, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Russell Lee Verlinger/Cleveland Guardians/Getty Images) | Getty Images It’s been a long road back to professional baseball for Daniel Espino. He’s had very limited time at the MLB level, but in his 6 IP for the Guardians out of the bullpen, he has a 44.4 K% and an xFIP of 2.13. He’s also been able to consistently hit the upper 90s (even touching 100 mph at times) with his fastball. Espino was widely considered the best pitcher in his entire draft class when the Guardians took him 24th overall in the 2019 draft. There’s been a lot to like with him coming out of the bullpen, but he was originally drafted as a starting pitcher. Today we’re here to ask if the Guardians should consider stretching him back out as a starter.The biggest factor working against this idea is that the injury concerns are very real for Espino, and stretching him back out does not come without risk. So far in 2026, in the minors and at the MLB level, he’s only gone past 25 pitches in an outing twice. After two shoulder surgeries, Espino has (rightfully) been closely managed. He has mostly thrown 15 to 20 pitches per outing and has never pitched in a game on back to back days. Asking him to move from that to being able to throw 80-90 pitches in a game every 5 days is no small order. Despite those risks, there are a couple reasons why this is a conversation worth having.The first reason to consider this move is the current lack of MLB ready SP depth with the organization. The current rotation has been solid so far in 2026, but Logan Allen appears to be the next option in line, and that’s a scenario that probably wouldn’t inspire much confidence. If a healthy Espino can transition back to a starter, he offers a much higher ceiling than LTA and could even take over one of the current rotation spots and open up something like a “Cecconi to the bullpen for long relief” type of dynamic. There’s also the option to use him in a more “restricted starter” type role with a 90 pitch hard cap and then do a piggy back strategy where you follow him up with Cecconi or another multi-inning relief option out of the pen.Of course, this move doesn’t come without cost. Moving Espino to the starting rotation would also mean taking away a potentially valuable bullpen piece. You can never have too many great arms coming out of your bullpen, but if there’s one thing this organization has shown, it’s that we have the ability to create very good bullpen arms seemingly out of nowhere. Look at what we’ve done with Cade Smith, who was an undrafted signing, and more recently the breakout of Colin Holderman, who has been a pivotal member of the 2026 bullpen. That doesn’t make losing Espino from the bullpen less significant, but our track record suggests replacing those relief inn