Historic day for Guardians in their decisive ALDS Game 1 win over Tigers

The rest versus rust debate was the main talking point ahead of the Cleveland Guardians' American League Division Series matchup with the Detroit Tigers. Having secured a first-round bye, the Guardians got nearly a week off from playing actual games while the Tigers were finishing a two-game sweep of the Houston Astros in the Wild Card round. There was a concern coming into this game that Cleveland may come out flat, giving Detroit an opportunity to steal Game 1. Luckily for the Guardians, that did not happen.

Cleveland got to scoring early in the contest, putting five runs up on the board in the 1st inning without recording an out. This made the Guadians the first American League team in baseball history to do so in a playoff game.

After getting two runs in to score thanks to Jose Ramirez and Josh Naylor, it was Lane Thomas who capped off the five-run inning. Thomas would step into the box with two men on and would proceed to crush a pitch into the bleachers for a three-run homer.

Cleveland was able to ride this 1st inning run production to a comfortable 7-0 win over Detroit. The Guardians were clearly in control from the start. Being able to stake an early five-run lead to Tanner Bibee allowed everyone to settle down and play with a level of comfort that this team needed after their time off. Having this type of outing will only reinforce the confidence this team has, not just for Saturday's game but for the rest of their playoff run.

Winning Game 1 was an absolute must for the Guardians. In addition to helping out in the above-mentioned area of confidence, it gives them a 1-0 lead heading into Game 2, where they will face Tigers ace and presumed American League Cy Young Winner in Tarik Skubal. This will be the toughest matchup for Cleveland in this series and perhaps the whole postseason. The Guardians will certainly have a chance to defeat Skubal and the Tigers in Game 2, but if they are not able to, seeing the series be split at one game apiece rather than facing elimination with an 0-2 deficit provides a little bit of relief.

Game 2 is scheduled for 4:08 PM on Monday, October 7th, as the Guardians look to take a 2-0 lead over Detroit,