The Cleveland Guardians’ postseason path is right in front of them 

At multiple points this year, it looked like the Cleveland Guardians’ 2025 season was dead. Their 10-game losing streak in July. Their swoon in Arizona. Two back-to-back tough losses to the Red Sox. 

But every time it seems like it’s time to start writing the obituary on the Guardians, they pull a hand out from the dirt and dig themselves out of their grave. 

The latest example of that came over the weekend when they took three out of four from the Tampa Bay Rays. Not only are they just 2 1/2 games back in the Wild Card Race, but they also leapfrogged the Rays in the Wild Card standings. 

They’ll get another chance to do that this week thanks to a huge four-game series at home against the Kansas City Royals, who sit just a half-game ahead of the Guardians in the Wild Card race. 

The Cleveland Guardians’ postseason path is right in front of them 

The Guardians have worked their way back into the postseason picture in the most Guardians way possible. It hasn’t been by mashing seven home runs a game or winning in crazy shootouts. It’s been because they’ve gotten excellent pitching and just enough offense to make it stand up. 

On Friday, they doomed the Rays thanks to a big second inning against Ian Seymour. On Saturday, they scored three runs but got Tanner Bibee’s first quality start in more than a month. On Sunday, a two-run sixth inning helped make Parker Messick a winner in another strong start for the promising rookie. 

Their only home run across that three game span came from noted power hitter Austin Hedges on Friday. 

The good news for them is that the Royals are in the same boat. The Guardians have the third-worst team wRC+ in baseball (84), while the Royals are just two spots ahead of them (90). They also have the two least productive outfields in baseball per wRC+. 

The Royals could also be without Bobby Witt Jr., who is day-to-day with back spasms and missed the last two games of their weekend series against the Twins. Witt’s in the middle of another terrific season that should earn him MVP votes, but they’re a different team without him in the lineup. 

After taking on the Royals, the Guardians have a three-game series against the lowly White Sox before facing off against the Tigers and Rangers in three of their last four series.

They’re likely too far gone to catch Detroit in the race for the American League Central (nine games back), but they’re going to need to beat them in the regular season if they want to earn a Wild Card spot. 

The Guardians were able to stay in the race thanks to some well-timed slumps by all the teams ahead of them. They’ve now got three weeks to try to fight their way to October.