Don’t count Guardians out of AL Central race yet
All hope seemed to evaporate when the Guardians lost two of three games to the White Sox last weekend and then lost to the Blue Jays on Aug. 7 to fall 5.5 games out of first place in the American League Central Division.
But with 45 games still to play, the Guards have one thing going for them — the Twins.
The Twins succumb to pressure the way an ice cube melts on an Arizona sidewalk in August. Minnesota’s 5.5-game bulge over the Guardians just a few days ago was its largest of the season. So how did the Twins respond? While the Guardians, behind superb starting pitching, gathered themselves to take two of the last three games from Toronto, the Twins were losing three straight games to the Tigers. That put the deficit for the Guards at 3.5 games heading to their three-game series with the Rays in Tampa.
The Guardians rallied for three runs in the top the ninth inning to tie the Rays, 8-8, only to lose 9-8 on a walkoff home run by Wander Franco. Not to worry. The Twins lost their fourth straight when they were crushed by the Phillies, 13-2.
The AL Central is a lousy division — the worst of the six in the Major Leagues. The team that eventually does win it could do so with a sub.-500 record. That has never happened.
The 2005 Padres won the NL West with a record of 82-80, five games better than the second-place Diamondbacks (77-85). The Padres were swept by the Cardinals in the first round to finish 82-83, thus becoming the only playoff team to end up with a losing record when playoffs are included.
The Guardians and Twins meet six more times this season — three in Minnesota from Aug. 28-30 and three in Cleveland from Sept 4-6.
The Guardians were 68-61 on Sept. 1 last year. The Twins were a game behind at 67-62. The Guards caught fire and finished 24-9. The Twins went in the opposite direction, finishing 11-22.
A different group of youngsters is keeping the Guardians in the race this season. Four players in the starting lineup in the 4-3 victory over the Blue Jays on Aug. 10 are rookies — catcher Bo Naylor, third baseman Brayan Rocchio, shortstop Jose Tena and left fielder Will Brennan.
First baseman Kole Calhoun has been in the majors since 2012, but he has been with the Guardians only since Aug. 4. The Guards sent cash to the Dodgers for Calhoun because they need someone to play first base while Josh Naylor recovers from a strained oblique.
Ramon Laureano, the starting right fielder in the Aug. 10 game, was claimed off waivers from the A’s on Aug. 7. The next night he doubled home the only run of the game when the Guardians beat Toronto, 1-0.
Noah Syndergaard, the pitcher acquired from the Dodgers, has started three games for the Guardians. He pitched well in two of them. The middle game was a clunker in which he allowed four home runs in a loss to the White Sox.
The numbers indicate the Guardians are not good enough to win the division. Their largest lead all season was a half-game July 13. They have never been more than three games over .500, and that was back on April 15 when they were 9-6. The most glaring stat that illustrates their scoring deficiency is they are 14-45 when they score three or fewer runs. That means they have scored three or fewer runs in 52% of their games.
Las Vegas has written off the Guardians, for sure. As of Aug. 11, betonline.org listed the Twins at minus-900 to win the AL Central, meaning a bettor would have to wager $900 to win $100 (and get his $900 back). The Guardians are plus-450, meaning a $100 bet on Cleveland would fetch a $450 profit if the Guardians win the division. The third-place Tigers are plus-5,000.
Still, with the Twins as the only competition in the division, there is always the chance Guardians can shock the world.
• It is a tribute to the completely revamped starting rotation that the Guardians are still in the race. Triston McKenzie, Shane Bieber and Cal Quantrill remain on the injured list. Aaron Civale was traded to the Rays on July 31. Zach Plesac is pitching in Columbus and not part of the 40-man roster.
Despite that, on the strength of Tanner Bibee (8-2, 2.92 ERA), Gavin Williams (1-3, 2.90) and Logan Allen (5-5, 3.55), the Guardians’ starters have allowed two or fewer runs in 21 of 27 starts since the All-Star break.
Prior to the game with Toronto on Aug. 10, Guardians starters since July 14, the unofficial start of the second half of the season, rank first in ERA (2.59), first in opponent’s batting average (.214) and first in hits allowed per nine innings (6.92).
I didn’t know that …
In a deck of cards, the king of hearts is the only king without a mustache. … Snakes can see even with their eyes closed. … A rainbow can be seen only in the morning or late afternoon. … Sloths can hold their breath longer than dolphins can. … The official gem in the state of Washington is petrified wood. … People don’t sneeze when sleeping.
