Guardians chasing extra bases again this season
The Guardians established their own brand of baseball in 2022, one that propelled them to the postseason. And they've already brought it into 2023.
While manager Terry Francona has acknowledged it would be a plus if Cleveland can hit for more power in 2023 — they ranked second-to-last in the majors last year in home runs — he's repeatedly said if they need to win with their more "demanding" style, then that's fine by them.
In terms of the offense, that style is primarily built on a lot of contact and aggressive base running.
Last year, the Guardians ranked first in instances of going from first to third on the base paths. They were also third in stolen bases. More than half the lineup is capable of stealing 20plus bases, and hitters like Steven Kwan take pride in being as 'annoying' as possible, which translates to being difficult outs in the form of making pitchers work or fouling off pitches.
One of the key plays in their first win of the season, a 9-4 victory over the Mariners Friday, included a fly ball to right field that was caught by Seattle outfielder Teoscar Hernandez. As he threw the ball into the infield, it hit Mike Zunino and got away. That allowed one run to score. A throwing error to the plate and some additionally aggressive base running then brought home another run.
"I thought our base running was excellent," Francona said. "We made them fight for everything and Zunino got in the way of that throw, and I know that's not by design, but that really helped us. But our base running then took over from there and really helped."
That was how the Guardians scored their first runs of the season. And it couldn't have been more appropriate.
"Yeah, that's the right brand of baseball," Kwan said. "That's our brand of baseball. To see that alive and well, it's motivating for everybody going forward."