Story by
'A huge, huge lift': Guardians offense finally breaks through after slow offensive June
- Story by
- 'A huge, huge lift': Guardians offense finally breaks through after slow offensive June
CLEVELAND — It's the baseball version of a deep breath. Have enough of them, and the Guardians might be able to keep feeding their playoff hopes some oxygen for a while longer.
Entering their June 11 game against Cincinnati , the Guardians had scored more than four runs in a game only once since May 28. All of the offensive production for which they had been searching arrived at once in an 11-2 beatdown that avoided a sweep at the hands of Terry Francona and the Reds.
Advertisement
Manager Stephen Vogt and the Guardians hadn't quite sounded any alarms. They didn't meet as a team to discuss the offensive struggles (Vogt rarely holds meetings for speeches). But it was becoming a factor, and it was acknowledged that pieces to the lineup might be trying to do a little too much as players pressed to stir up some production.
"When you're going through a tough stretch where you're having trouble winning games, you want to step up and get two hits for your team every time you get up there," Vogt said. "That's human nature. It's the way every baseball player is wired."
As if often the case with stretches within a 162-game season, there was some give and take with how to view Cleveland's recent performances.
Guardians first baseman Carlos Santana (41) celebrates his third-inning grand slam against the Reds with teammates Jose Ramirez (right), Lane Thomas (left) and Angel Martinez (back right), June 11, 2025, in Cleveland.
Guardians among lowest scoring teams in MLB in June
Entering June 11, the Guardians were 3-6 in June. They were 29th in the majors in runs this month with 23. Then again, even with the recent skid, they were only a half-game out of a Wild Card spot in the American League playoff race.
Advertisement
So the message remained to stay the course, just play baseball, and as Vogt has repeated: have fun.
"I don't think we're playing bad baseball," Vogt said. "I just think we're not reaching our full potential. We're going to get there. It's just a matter of time."
An 11-run explosion makes all of it a bit easier.
"I think there's obviously pressure on yourself to do well, but I think when you take the mindset of those games and at-bats and pitch-by-pitch that you're trying to move a guy or taking that kind of team at-bat, it takes some of the pressure off yourself, and usually good things start to happen," said Lane Thomas , who hit a three-run home run in the June 11 win. "It seemed like we kind of went down the lineup today and did that a lot, so it was good."
Advertisement
The Guardians now begin a lengthy West Coast road trip. If the lack of firepower within the lineup from the last two weeks follows them, they could see their playoff hopes jeopardized. If June 11's outburst was a breakthrough, perhaps they can still stay in the fight.
Their two most recent games might offer the perfect snapshot, a shutout loss followed by an 11-run demolition less than 24 hours later.
"It was just good to see our guys come out today, especially after a game like last night where you have a hard time getting anything going offensively," Vogt said. "For us to break out right away, that was a huge, huge lift."
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians breaks through in MLB playoff race
