CLEVELAND — It’s been a September to remember for both of Ohio’s Major League Baseball teams.
What You Need To Know
Both the Cleveland Guardians and Cincinnati Reds control their own destiny in the AL and NL playoff races
The Guardians enter Tuesday holding the final AL Wild Card spot and just one game back of Detroit in the AL Central
The Reds occupy the final NL Wild Card spot and hold the tiebreaker over the New York Mets
Both the Cleveland Guardians and Cincinnati Reds control their own MLB playoff destinies.
The Guardians enter the final six games of the season in possession of the American League’s final Wild Card spot and just one game back of Detroit for first place in the AL Central, a team they trailed by 15 and ½ games in July.
“This is pretty unprecedented,” Away Back and Gone site expert and MLB.com writer Henry Palattella said. “If they come back from 15.5 games, that’s the biggest comeback in MLB history in terms of the division. They’ve won every game they’ve needed to win, they’ve beaten every team they needed to beat, and now they’re at the point where they control their own fate.”
Palattella says Cleveland’s resiliency in the playoff race is a testament to manager Stephen Vogt.
“They never lost faith in that clubhouse even though everyone else in the baseball world justifiably lost faith in them,” he said. “To see them get rewarded for that faith is satisfying for all of Cleveland.”
Cleveland is an MLB best 16-5 in the month of September. They host the American League Central-leading Detroit Tigers starting Tuesday night at Progressive Field. Vogt says the fans need to do their part as much as the players if the team wants to take over the division lead.
“I know it’s school nights, I know people work, but we need our fans,” said Vogt. “We need to pack out Progressive. The boys are ready. We know what’s at stake. It’s going to be a lot of fun this week.”
Down I-71, the Cincinnati Reds are also closing in on clinching a playoff berth.
“It’s impressive that they went from where they were to controlling their own destiny,” Palattella said. “If they win out the rest of the year, they make the postseason. Terry Francona was able get every ounce of talent he could get out of his teams in Cleveland, and he’s done that in Cincinnati.”
The Reds finish the season with series against the Pirates and Brewers as they try and return to the playoffs for the first time in five years.
“We’ve earned the right to enjoy the competition, I think that’s the best way to look at it,” Reds Manager Terry Francona said.
As both teams continue the march to October, it remains of the most exciting times of the season for the fans.
“No matter what, really, a goal of a baseball team is to be playing meaningful baseball in September, and they’ve been doing it in spades, which is awesome to see,” said Palattella.