The Cleveland Guardians have reached the point where every game starts to feel heavier, and the latest power rankings reflect it. ESPN dropped Cleveland to No. 20, down from No. 16, as the club tries to stop the slide before the season’s final month really takes over.
That fall comes after a rough stretch that has pushed the Guardians from first place to third in the AL Central and cost them an AL Wild Card spot. They were sitting in a far better place not long ago, but the post-All-Star-break run has been brutal: Cleveland is 11-20 since returning to action.
“Despite an unusually aggressive trade deadline, the Guardians remain ice cold, and if things don’t get rolling soon, Cleveland runs the risk of falling out of an AL Central race that’s virtually impossible to fall out of. The pickups - Jo Adell, Foster Griffin and Nathaniel Lowe - have been more fine than dynamic, though Adell and Lowe have contributed to a modest uptick by the offense of late,” Doolittle wrote.
The drop in ESPN’s rankings is another sign of how far things have slipped since mid-July, when Cleveland entered the All-Star break tied for first with the Chicago White Sox and had spent much of the season alone at the top. Bleacher Report had the Guardians at No. 12 at that point.
Since then, the division picture has changed around them. The Guardians fell behind both the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers, though they did recently move back ahead of the Tigers after winning three of their past five games.
Cleveland tried to jolt the roster at the trade deadline by adding Adell, Lowe and Griffin, but the early returns have been mixed. The Guardians are only 5-10 since those moves were made.
Adell had his best moment in a Cleveland uniform on Tuesday against the San Francisco Giants, driving in six runs after fouling a ball off his left knee. He was available to pinch-hit on Thursday and could be back in the lineup when the Guardians open a three-game series at the Colorado Rockies on Friday.
Lowe showed a spark of his own last Friday against the San Diego Padres, going 3-for-4 with his second home run for Cleveland. Since then, though, he has managed only two hits in 14 at-bats. Griffin is lined up to make his fourth start for the Guardians on Sunday after going 2-1 with a 4.20 ERA since joining the club.
With 34 games left heading into this weekend, Cleveland does not have much time to turn the standings or the mood around.
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Gabriel Arias Just Forced A Former Guardian Back Out Of Chicago
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Angel Genao Is Forcing A Guardians Infield Dilemma
Angel Genaos first taste of the big leagues has been enough to make the Guardians pay attention. Since making his MLB debut on Aug. 5, he has handled a utility infield role with the kind of steady play that can change a managers thinking, pairing a .320/.382/.440 slash line with encouraging defensive work through his first 50 at-bats.
Stephen Vogt has already acknowledged the ripple effect, noting that Genaos performance is turning the infield into a real competition for playing time. For Cleveland, that is the good kind of problem to have, but it can also lead to difficult roster decisions as the club tries to balance production, versatility and opportunity across the group. [Read more 🡒]
Stephen Vogt Just Sent A Clear Message With Clevelands Lineup
Stephen Vogt did something rare for Cleveland this week by rolling out the same lineup in back-to-back games, a small choice that still carried plenty of meaning in a season where the manager has mixed and matched often. It suggested a group that was starting to settle in, and it came with rookie Angel Genao holding down shortstop for a second straight start while Erik Sabrowski continued to trend up after his return from the injured list.
The lineup stability also fit the broader tone around the club, where Vogt had checked in with key players about how they were feeling before locking things in. Jos Ramrez was part of that conversation, and he kept adding to his place in franchise history with another hit, nudging himself further up Cleveland's all-time list while the Guardians tried to find a rhythm that has been elusive for much of the season. [Read more 🡒]