Guardians writing ‘their own story’ as playoffs continue
The Cleveland Guardians are on the offensive. Even if offense was hard to come by on Saturday.
A clubhouse full of 24- and 25-yearolds. A number of rookies and secondyear players who took on larger roles. Not a single pitcher over the age of 27. A roster with little playoff experience and virtually none with a full postseason atmosphere.
That doesn't mean the Guardians are getting pushed around in the postseason. Saturday's 15-inning, 1-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series featured nearly five hours of high-intensity pitches, a couple of highlight reel defensive plays, more than half a dozen solid pitching performances, a lot of offensive frustration and one swing that has the Guardians playing Tuesday in New York in the AL Division Series.
The youngest team in baseball wants to see how much noise it can make the rest of October. It has been made clear all season that there is an expectation, regardless of any deficit, they'll come back
and win. A lineup built on a ton of contact and aggressive base running. A pitching staff that has continued to develop into one of the game's best from top to bottom.
It's a team that played with a veteran poise in September, when it won 24 of its final 30 games to win the division by 11 games. And it's now a club that has won the first two playoff games, both nail-biters,
Guardians at Yankees
Time: 7:37 p.m. Tuesday
TV: TBS as a collective group.
“Every part of this journey is fun right now,” president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said. “They are a group that really has fun being around each other, that cares for each other and that believes in themselves. They didn't let anybody else write their season story for them. They took the reins and wrote their own story. It's been a fun book so far, look forward to seeing how far we can go.”
Naylor with scoop of the season
Josh Naylor just seems to have a knack for finding some big moments.
He put together a historic night in Chicago in May. He had the head-butt heard ‘round Cleveland following a walk-off home run against the Minnesota Twins. He's been in the center, emotionally at least, of a lot of what the Guardians have done in 2022.
And he was involved in a play that, without it, very likely would have forced the Guardians to play a Game 3 on Sunday. In the 12th inning, with runners on the corners and two outs, Manuel Margot grounded a ball down the third-base line. Jose Ramirez fielded it and, while falling away from first base, fired the ball across the infield. Naylor, at first, stretched to his limit and made one of the best scoops you'll ever see a first baseman make while somehow keeping his foot on the base. Without that play, Gonzalez and his Spongebob walk-up song likely never get the chance to win it in the 15th. And without it, the Guardians might be facing elimination on Sunday rather than planning a trip to New York.
“He kind of willed himself there to make that play,” manager Terry Francona said. “And Naylor, that's a, I don't know if it's a game-saving, it might be a yearsaving play. They score on that play and the way things were going we weren't throwing crooked numbers up.”
The Guardians have known since Day One they'd have to be a team that plays great defense to have a chance. They'd have to do the little things — run the bases aggressively, make the defensive play. They'd have to do just enough. Naylor scooping that ball, stretching just far enough and keeping his foot on the bag — it was just enough.