CLEVELAND — The Guardians ' offensive issues are about to reach DEFCON 1.
The lineup has started the season slowly in the past. Aprils in Cleveland haven't lent themselves to hot starts at times. The general trend isn't exactly new.
But the batting woes in 2023 are different, especially considering the Guardians' aspirations of defending their American League Central title and returning to the MLB playoffs. The beginning of the season have been a more extreme version of some of the offensive early season struggles that have plagued the Guardians in the past.
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The Guardians are last in the majors in several offensive categories , including wRC+ (72, the only club below 80, which means they've been 28% below league average), slugging percentage (.325), home runs (19, the only club under 24) and runs (126).
The Texas Rangers, while playing fewer games, have scored 101 more runs than the Guardians.
"We're going to keep grinding away, competing with these guys. It hasn't been good," said hitting coach Chris Valaika. "We can't keep making excuses [like how we] had the same record [at this point] last year and things like that. I think there are different expectations, not just internally but externally, that we have to live up to, and we're going to keep competing.
"It's a long season and we [we have to] weather the storm right now."
Over their last 10 games, the Guardians have scored more than three runs only once — and in that game, they scratched across four. They've scored two or fewer runs in four consecutive games. And they've been shut out twice in the last week.
The messaging from the Guardians has been one of confidence, of staying the course with this group until they can hit their way out of it. Making major, sudden adjustments simply for the sake of changing something can be as detrimental as anything. Of course, tweaks are being made, diversions are being attempted, but they don't want anyone reaching for the life boats, either.
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"I don't think it takes much sometimes for players to perceive panic, so showing them that you care is certainly important, but showing them that you want to be there with them through this and [see] them through it is equally important," said manager Terry Francona. "I think our hitting [coaches are aware of that], and I've tried to be aware of that, too.
"I think they know we're all in this together."
While the 2022 Guardians also didn't win many games through power, the 2023 deficiencies have been on another level. Pete Alonso and Max Muncy have combined to hit five more home runs than the Guardians as a team. Only 16 qualified hitters in the majors have a lower slugging percentage than the Guardians' .325, and three of them are in Cleveland's everyday lineup.
"We're not going to dig our head in the sand," Valaika said. "I think internally we're going to keep going about our business the same way and stay consistent with our messaging. Nothing's changed from last year to this year, other than some early on results.
"So, we're going to keep competing. And I know the results haven't necessarily been here, but if we stay positive with these guys, stay consistent with that, I believe in them and we're going to come out the other end."
The Guardians' season-long numbers are rough. Their numbers since the calendar turned to May are downright R-rated.
Since May 1, Andres Gimenez is 2-for-28. He finished sixth in AL MVP voting a year ago.
Josh Naylor is 4-for-31.
Myles Straw , who started 2023 on a high note, has fallen back to Earth and crashed through the planet's crust, hitting .120 in May.
Steven Kwan was one of the key reasons the Guardians made a run to October last year, but he hasn't been the same hitter atop the lineup thus far. Jose Ramirez has been productive, but he certainly isn't hitting at Jose Ramirez levels, either.
Mike Zunino in March/April hit .241 with an .837 OPS, a major improvement for Cleveland's offensive production at the catcher position compared to previous years. In May? He's 0-for-20.
It is, in a way, somewhat remarkable the Guardians have had the league's worst offense, and yet they're 17-20 and only 2.5 games out of first place. It's a testament to the club's pitching and defense. It's also an example of how bad the AL Central has been. Only the Minnesota Twins are above .500, and they're hanging onto that by a thread after losing three consecutive games.
Still being within striking distance of a playoff spot is a positive considering the issues with the lineup, but the Guardians also have mountains of work to do to right the ship with the bats.
"Yeah, I mean, you've just got to keep your head down and keep going," Zunino told the Beacon Journal. "It's one of those things where as bleak as it looks right now, we're only a few games out of first place, and [the slump] gets magnified the more it happens.
"But I think when you look in the grand scheme of things, there's a lot of baseball left, and we're in a fortunate boat to be right there in the race."
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: How can the Cleveland Guardians turn around their MLB-worst offense?
