A Bronx Tale: Biggest Series of the Season for the Cleveland Guardians

Every parent raises their child differently. However, some lessons transcend generations and families—hold the door, use your manners, and don’t talk with food in your mouth. If you grew up as a sports fan in Northeast Ohio, I’d be willing to bet that your parents taught you to despise Michigan, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the New York Yankees. While regional differences inspire our hatred of the Wolverines and Steelers, the Yankees are hated from coast to coast because they win and spend lots of money, and their fans will let you know about it, too. While they haven’t won a World Series themselves since 2009, the Bronx Bombers have ended three of the Guardians' last four postseason trips (2017, 2020, 2022). As the AL Central race has tightened up with the Guards holding just a two-game lead over the Twins, a series against the Yankees may again be the most crucial point in a Cleveland Guardians’ season. 

Cleveland’s post-All-Star break inconsistency has puzzled pundits and fans. A five-game win streak featuring impressive victories over the Phillies and Orioles pushed the Guardians back up the power rankings and alleviated worries of a mundane start to the season’s second half. This stretch was followed by a seven-game losing streak, which included a sweep at the hands of the Diamondbacks and two losses apiece to the O’s and Twins. The Guards turned it right back around with a five-game winning streak. Emmanuel Clase got the save in four consecutive games, and after fighting back to split in Minnesota, the Guards swept the Cubs. Despite sweeping an NL Central foe and retaking the best record in baseball, the Guards' bats ran dry against the Brewers. The baby-blue-donning Brew Crew (I do accept bribes/gifts in the form of these jerseys) limited the Guardians' offense and swept the Clevelanders despite only scoring nine runs on the weekend.

The team stands at .500 over their last twenty games; Guardians fans have conspiracy theories about the team’s inconsistencies. Some argue that the team is too young and lacks critical experience for the home stretch. Some argue an incredible start fueled an over-performing team that is now leaking oil. Others? Well, I’m sure if you comb through social media long enough, you’ll find theories that rookie manager Stephen Vogt is not ready to handle the strenuous playoff push. The real answer, you may ask? It doesn’t matter how they got here. The Cleveland Guardians lead the AL Central and have great odds to make the playoffs (93.4% via Fangraphs). This week in the Bronx will show us how ready they are to compete come playoff time. 

Despite rarely being given the spotlight during the regular season, the Guardians will play two nationally televised weekday games this week, confirming the nation’s attention to this matchup. Schedule-wise, the Guardians will continue to walk through hell after they leave Yankee Stadium. 13 of the next 16 games on the Guardians’ schedule come against the defending champion Rangers, powerhouse Dodgers, and upstart Royals. As things don’t get any easier, a series win in New York may elevate this team, both in the standings and spirit. If the Guardians can walk out of NYC with a series win, the weekend crowd at Progressive Field will have some extra juice as the team embarks on a seven-game homestand. Should they drop the series, which would likely mean the Twins catch the Guardians or come within a game, players may start to grip their bats a little tighter, as objects in the mirror are closer than they appear.

2023-24 is a flat circle for Cleveland sports. Stop me when you’ve heard this before: a playoff-hopeful Cleveland team’s star suffered a season-ending injury during their second start, everyone wrote them off, and a rag-tag group kept the ship afloat- oh yeah, and there are old dudes! While Big Thanos and Big Christmas have emerged, the old dudes are what we will never forget. They may not be Joe Flacco, but Alex Cobb and Matthew Boyd are giving every ounce of baseball they have to this team- and so far, it’s working. Against the Cubs, both Cobb and Boyd worked into the sixth inning while only allowing one earned run. Boyd and Gavin Williams will get the bump against the pinstripes (Cobb was originally scheduled to pitch on Wednesday but has since been placed on the injured list). Before you throw out this Guardians team and giggle at the unconventional starting pitching thrown to the lions in Yankee Stadium, remember what your parents always taught you: never judge a book by its cover.