MLB pundit pours cold water on Guardians chances to repeat as division champs in 2026

The Cleveland Guardians' run toward an American League Central title last year was nothing short of remarkable. 

After trailing the Tigers as much as 15 1/2 games in the division, the Guardians rattled off a historic September while the Tigers went into free fall next to him. While it was a bit of an unconventional way to win a division, it was still a division title nonetheless. 

But with 2026 here, there’s no better time to shift from reminiscing on that magical season to thinking about the Guardians’ chances to make it three straight division titles. 

We got another example of that on Monday when MLB.com’s Will Leitch put out a story ranking every division winner from 2025’s chances to repeat this season. 

And, in a bit of unsurprising news, he had the Guardians ranked at the bottom of the list. 

The Guardians are going to have an uphill battle to repeat as AL Central champions

The Guardians being at the bottom of Leitch’s list shouldn’t come as a huge surprise given they needed a historic comeback to win the division last season… and followed that up by adding next to nothing to their offense. Meanwhile, other division champions like the Phillies, Blue Jays and Dodgers have spent the offseason adding to their already solid rosters. 

“Will the Royals push forward? Will the Twins surprise? Will the Tigers have Tarik Skubal all year? Will the White Sox keep improving? Will the Guardians basically just do the same thing they did last season? I have no idea. It could be the Guardians, sure. But honestly: Pick a name out of a hat,” Leitch wrote in a pretty accurate summation of the malaise that’s settled in throughout the American League Central. 

That said, that malaise could end up helping the Guardians, especially if the Tigers end up trading Tarik Skubal. Yes, the Royals added Lane Thomas and seem to be built a little better than they were during their disappointing 2025, but they’ve been a clear third fiddle behind the Guardians and Tigers. 

The biggest thing that will likely end up dictating whether or not the Guardians end up winning a division title for a third straight season will be the production (or lack thereof) from their outfield. 

Last season the Guardians had one of the worst outfields in all of MLB despite having an All-Star left fielder in Steven Kwan, and their lone external addition has been bringing inStuart Fairchild on a minor league deal.

While that isn’t a truly fair assessment of the situation given that Chase DeLauter, George Valera and others are more inspiring options than what the Guardians were working with last year, the lack of upgrades are still frustrating given that it’s a clear area of need. 

Stephen Vogt has had just enough devil magic to help the Guardians win the AL Central the past two seasons. And unless something drastic happens between now and the end of March, he’s going to have his work cut for him in 2026.