The Guardians need some offensive help from slow-starting players such as Carlos Santana.AP
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Guardians are an easy team to like
They run ground balls out, they play solid defense, their relay throws are often things of beauty and their pitching staff, slowly, but surely, is making strides.
The concern is the offense.
In their just completed 10-game homestand, they huffed and puffed and elbowed their way to a 6-4 record. They went 2-1 against the AL East leading Yankees, 1-2 against the second-place Red Sox and 3-1 against the Twins, predicted by many to win the AL Central.
They pulled it off despite being outscored by 20 runs, 52-32. That is a near impossible standard to maintain, and that is where the concern rests for manager Stephen Vogt’s team.
This is a team that lives on the back of its bullpen. It’s why they went into Saturday’s game against Toronto with a 7-1 record in one-run games. But with super closer Emmanuel Clase off to an unsteady start this season, they need to produce more offense to defend their AL Central championship.
Here’s how they rank in several offensive categories in the AL:
Batting average: 10th, .233.Onbase percentage: 10th, .303.OPS: 10th, .685.Walks: 10th, 98.Slugging percentage: Eighth, .382Runs: Eighth, 121.Home runs: Eighth, 36.Runners in scoring position; Eighth, .239.Stolen bases: Sixth, 24.
It’s not all doom and gloom.
Kyle Manzardo is hitting just .214 (21 for 98) but leads the team with eight homers and 21 RBI in his first full season in the big leagues. Steven Kwan is off to another hot start from the leadoff spot, batting .323 (41 for 127) with four homers and 15 RBI. Daniel Schneemann (.259) and Gabriel Arias (.242) have been solid, while Angel Martinez, hitting .323 (20 for 62), has provided a spark since being recalled from Triple-A Columbus.
Jose Ramirez is still the focal point of the offense. He’s hitting .274 (31 for 113) with five homers and 15 RBI. But he hasn’t homered since April 21 and left Friday’s game in Toronto with a sprained right ankle. Ramirez was not in the lineup for Saturday’s game against the Blue Jays.
The Guardians, however, still aren’t getting enough help from Carlos Santana, Bo Naylor, Jhonkensy Noel and Nolan Jones. Losing Lane Thomas to a bruised right wrist hasn’t helped either.
A slow start is nothing new to Santana. The Guardians knew that when they signed him to a one-year $12 million deal during the offseason. He homered and drove in a run in Friday’s 5-3 loss to Toronto so perhaps that’s a good sign.
Naylor hit his third homer in the last four games on Friday and that’s definitely a good sign for the Guardians catcher.
At the end of April, Vogt was asked how he feels about his team.
“I love them,” he said. “I like the mix on this team. The starting pitching really excites me. The bullpen is the bullpen and they’re phenomenal.
“I think we have a good group of young position players that are going to do some special things this year. I really like the direction this team is going in. One month in, I couldn’t ask to be in a better spot.”
The Guardians entered Saturday’s game at Rogers Centre at 18-14, 2 1/2 games behind first-place Detroit in the AL Central.
Transition update
On March 7, the Guardians said they were inviting a player to camp. They were in spring training, so it wasn’t a surprise.
What was a surprise is that the player was former No.1 pick Tyler Naquin, and that left-handed hitting outfielder was going to try and make it back to the big leagues as a pitcher.
Naquin is still at it in Goodyear, Arizona. He had to go through a full spring training, refine his pitching routines and build shoulder strength.
He’s thrown several batting practice sessions and is expected to be ready for minor league game action soon. Naquin has been up to 95 mph and is throwing a cut fastball and a changeup.
He was Cleveland No.1 pick in 2012 and finished third in the AL Rookie of the Year voting in 2016. He last played in the big leagues in 2023.
Names to remember
Walker Buehler, who pitched Boston past the Guards in the second game of the April 26 doubleheader at Progressive Field, has been placed on the injured list with bursitis in the right shoulder.Lucas Giolito, who made six starts for the Guardians in 2023 and then signed a two-year $38.5 million deal with Boston, finally made his Red Sox debut on Wednesday against Toronto. He needed Tommy John surgery in 2024 and strained a hamstring in spring training this year.Anthony Santander, former Cleveland minor leaguer, is off to slow start in Toronto after signing a $92.5 million deal over the winter. He’s hitting .178 (21 for 118) with four homers and 12 RBI.Catcher Luke Maile, who did a great job behind the plate for Cleveland in 2022, has been promoted to the big leagues by the Royals.Outfielder Daniel Johnson, who played briefly with the Indians in 2020 and 2021, has signed a minor league deal with San Francisco after starting the year playing in Mexico.Carl Edwards Jr., who recorded two of the final three outs for the Cubs in the 10th inning of Game 7 of the 2016 World Series against the Indians, elected free agency after being outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake City by the Angels.RHP J.P. Feyereisen, a sixth-round pick by the Indians in 2014, is back with the Dodgers for the second time in two years after being claimed on waivers from Arizona.