CLEVELAND — At various points during the 1,241-day stretch in which Daniel Espino was sidelined, he figured he would never pitch again, and certainly not in the majors.
But with two shoulder surgeries and four lost seasons in his rearview, the former top prospect is finally bound for the big leagues. Espino will join the Cleveland Guardians on Friday ahead of their series against the Detroit Tigers, a team source told The Athletic. He’ll take the roster spot previously held by Codi Heuer, who was optioned to Triple A on Thursday.
Espino was Cleveland’s first-round pick in 2019, a broad-shouldered high school kid with a blazing fastball. He piled up gaudy strikeout totals and soared up top prospect lists. Gavin Williams and Tanner Bibee graduated to the majors first, but Espino was destined to be the ace of the next great Cleveland rotation.
Instead, his right shoulder refused to cooperate. He made only four starts in 2022, yet MLB Pipeline still ranked him the No. 16 prospect in the league. Baseball America ranked him No. 19. Espino underwent shoulder surgery in May 2023. Six months later, he lost his father and closest confidant, Danilo, to prostate cancer. Four months after that, Espino went under the knife again to repair his shoulder capsule and rotator cuff.
He finally returned to the mound for game action Sept. 20, 2025, for Triple-A Columbus. More than 700 miles northwest, before their game at Target Field in Minnesota, every Guardians coach tuned in to watch his comeback moment.
The Guardians weren’t shy this spring in suggesting Espino would factor into the bullpen mix this season, but they kept it to cautious optimism. No one knew how Espino’s arm would respond to each test they tossed his way.
They sent him to Columbus, where he pitched an inning every few days. Occasionally, they’d add a new wrinkle to prepare him for life in the majors. He finished one inning and started another. He warmed up one day, didn’t enter the game, and then pitched the next day. He even served as an opener.
It hasn’t been seamless. He has issued 15 walks in 18 2/3 innings. To be fair, Espino hasn’t pitched consistently like this in more than four years.
The stuff, however, remains tantalizing. His fastball still registers in the upper 90s. His slider can still make hitters look silly. The strikeout rate remains high.
The Guardians — and Cleveland fans — have been waiting to see that golden arm in action for a long time. This might not be the way Espino or anyone in the organization would have drawn it up when he was breezing through the farm system and lulling Cleveland’s decision-makers into a cozy daydream.
At last, though, Espino has pushed his way to the big leagues after more adversity than he could have envisioned.
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