The Cleveland Guardians are in the kind of stretch that forces everyone to speak plainly, and Chris Antonetti did exactly that.
With the club sitting in a crowded AL Central and trying to steady itself after the trade deadline, the president of baseball operations didn’t try to spin away the reality. Cleveland has lost eight of its last 11, and the offense has been the biggest source of frustration, especially when the game has tightened up and the timely hit hasn’t come.
“We still have an opportunity in front of us and we have to play better baseball,” Antonetti said.
He followed that up with a line that made the organization’s view on the slump pretty clear.
“We have not played well over the last few weeks and I think everybody believes we’re capable of more,” Antonetti said.
That backdrop was made a little more uncomfortable by another issue involving the bullpen, which has been one of Cleveland’s more dependable areas this season. Colin Holderman left Saturday’s win over the Padres with right wrist inflammation after manager Stephen Vogt pulled him with two outs in the seventh inning, saying he didn’t like what he saw on Holderman’s face during the at bat. Vogt described it as a possible day-to-day situation, but Holderman has dealt with a similar wrist injury before, and that cost him about six weeks last season.
If Holderman misses time, it would be a real hit to a relief group that has been leaned on hard. He came into Saturday with an ERA under two and was one of six relievers who had already topped 45 appearances, a sign of just how much Vogt has trusted that bullpen in high-leverage spots all year.
Antonetti’s comments were about accountability more than alarm, and that matters with about forty games left. The roster still has enough talent to make noise, and Saturday’s combined one-hitter behind Joey Cantillo was a reminder of what this team can look like when it’s locked in. Now the question is whether Cleveland can turn that into something more lasting while the wild card race remains tight enough for a strong response to matter.
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DeLauter has been one of the more important hitters on the roster, putting together a rookie campaign built around a .286 average, 13 homers and 57 RBI. Any interruption to that production matters for a Cleveland club that has leaned on his presence, and now it has to wait to learn whether the setback is only a brief pause or something that lingers longer. [Read more 🡒]
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Braves Move On As Carlos Santana Faces One More Big Question
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Now a free agent again, Santana is in familiar territory but with one important wrinkle still ahead. He can sign with another club before the postseason roster deadline, which leaves at least one more decision in front of a player who has been around long enough to know how quickly a season can turn from opportunity to uncertainty. [Read more 🡒]