Well friends, it's been a long two years but your Cleveland Guardians are back in the ALCS! Jokes aside it is so great to still be playing baseball in mid-October, and before we dive into a week (or more) of some high stress ball again, it's important to take a minute and appreciate what this team gives us on a year to year basis-
Ok, appreciation over and now it's time for the stress again!
Right from the gun, DEATH BY SINGLES was the theme here- as the Guardians were able to get 2 of their own but no run scored because of a Jose caught stealing (I don't hate it, if you love Jose when he's at his best, you gotta accept there will be some moments like this). Then the bottom half of the first. Before we get to the "They are who we thought they were" start, I wanna point out one of the Keys to Victory that the writers here highlighted on Sunday Night's Disgusting Baseball podcast. When it was my turn, I gave a long winded answer to say that we need to be great in the margins. That the biggest different between the Rays and the Guardians is that Tampa does every little thing right, whereas Cleveland is built to do just that, but far too often shoots themselves in the foot. But if we play sharp, heads up baseball (like we've seen from this team before), the difference in these two teams gets much smaller, and the Winner could just come down to simply the team that comes up with more clutch hits. And ANOTHER big complaint of mine this year for the Guardians was that they start every series the same way- looking like they're playing a new sport or at best, just very unprepared for the opponent. All of these points rang true out the gate.
In the bottom half of the 1st, the Rays did everything you'd expect of a team that plays perfectly in the margins to the tune of 98 Wins and the 1 seed (and from an AL East schedule, at that). Leadoff hitter and former Prospect Super-Crush of yours truly, Yandy Diaz kicked off things off laying off 3 pitches and getting a 3-0 count. Not the start you want for Griffin. Yandy singled on a 3-1 pitch that took a Tampa hop under Kwan's glove and he ends up on 2nd base
And we're off…
Now, one thing you'll notice about this lineup vs Chicago's is that, while Tampa may not have the gaudy fat slugging numbers across the board, they are much better in the "take what's available" arena. It's not a terribly deep lineup, but everyone does their job. Jonathan Aranda would sac bunt Yandy to 3rd and then with the infield in(?), Junior Caminero blasted a single through the infield and it was 1-0 Indians farmhands over the Guardians.
Oh but that was far from the end of it. The Rays would add 3 more singles and a HBP (a jersey scraping special, at that) to give them a 2-0 lead and pushing Foster Griffin to 29 pitches through just the 1st inning. They did kinda exactly what you'd expect. And they were fired up on every single successful at bat. A team on a mission, some would say.
And look, the Guardians weren't just laying down. They actually had 5 hits (all singles) in their first 10 at bats. They were giving themselves opportunities, but as we've seen all year, did nothing with those opportunities.
In other words, through 4 innings;
Team who does all the right things, takes advantage of every opportunity and plays exceptional defense, keeping possible doubles to singles and stopping any ground-ball hit their way: 2
Team who doesn't take advantage: 0
It's been a tough pill to swallow all season, being the team that just does not take advantage of scoring opportunities. Through 4 innings the Guardians would have 6 hits, however all 6 would come in the 12 at bats they had without a man in scoring position. But WITH RISP, the Achilles heel of the 2026 Guardians? 0-5. Meanwhile the Rays were 2-3 in that scenario.
If it sounds like I'm beating a dead horse, it's because "Thud, Thud, Thud, Thud, Thud" (I've never actually listened to a dead horse being beat, thankfully, but I imagine it sounds something like that).
Fortunately for the Guardians, Griffin settled in and was able to deliver 3 scoreless innings after that tough 1st. And in the 5th, with the Rays flipping the lineup over for their 3rd at bats, Steven Vogt called on the rookie Daniel Espino to take on the Rays 3 All Stars. And Daniel looked every bit of the Future Ace we always dreamt of…
Espino struck out Diaz, Aranda and Caminero on 14 pitches, 10 of which were strikes. This was a really nice bounceback for the Rook after what was a shaky playoff debut vs Chicago.
And on the very next pitch…
Chase DeLauterrrrrr, Hit a Homerrrrrrr!
Now you could feel the Guardians getting comfortable. They've had 7 hits and finally made one count. Rasmussen's pitch count was over 80, but you can just feel Cash wanting to be greedy and just get thru the 6th. There were a couple more bullets, but Rasmussen did just that, giving Tampa 6 innings of 1 run ball, scattering 7 hits, striking out 7 and of course, walking none. It was the type of line you expect from your Ace, even if he was in and out of danger pretty much every inning. But as the Rays have done all year, they didn't let it hurt.
After Espino's one Lights Out Inning, Joey Cantillo would come in to give us anything but Lights Out, walking two and making Carl Willis take an uncomfortable and likely humid walk to the mound. However, Aloha Joe got the job done, getting us 3 outs and keeping us down 1 as we entered the final Third of the game.
Coming out for the 7th and I was surprised to see Drew Rasmussen is actually still in the game and OH MY GOD PATTY BARRELS
Turns out, 6 innings and ~2 runs would be Drew's final line, as Cash's greed did come back and bite him. After 1 pitch in the 7th, Rasmussen would be pulled and we are all tied up with 3 to play!
Patrick Bailey, man, what an absolute stud the Guardians pulled from the Giants. Super Clutch, rising to the moment time and time again and he's under team control for 3 more years. And to think there were some people who thought this trade would be a net negative! Because we dealt a draft pick and a possible 6th starter? Unbelievable.
Cam Booser would be the first reliever Cash would go to, a Lefty with great season long numbers, something we might see a lot of this series. Vogt would counter with an Angel Martinez pinch hitting opportunity for Petey Halpin…
I had mixed feelings here. On the one hand, I do want to see Angel be given more chances. Anyone who's watched the Guards this year knows that with Angel, you get two players. The first we saw in the ALDS, going 0-15, striking out 8 times with zero discipline and approach. But then you get the other guy, who will give you an AL Player of the Week and go absolutely scorched earth in what could be a series flipping performance. So yes, if you want to see the second guy, you're gonna have to give the first guy a chance to work out of it. However, I also know that this is the team you want your A+ defense in for, and while Angel has been good in left field, I like Kwan-Halpin better than Angel-Kwan.
Angel's approach was something along the lines of "don't do everything you just did be Chicago", taking two strikes down the middle before eventually striking out. Booser took down Rocchio and Kwan and we moved onto the bottom of the 7th.
Hunter Gaddis, he of ALDS Game 4 & 5 Heroics, would come in for the 7th, with the 3 Tampa All Stars set to bat. And while he didn't do it with the same style that Espino did, Gaddis got why job done, giving up an infield single to Diaz before getting Aranda to fly out and then striking out the MVP Hopeful Junior Caminero on something you've never seen before.
Do you feel that? The anxiety you felt like you weren't gonna have because we weren't expected to win tonight? Oh yeah, that anxiety is back, baby!
Onto the 8th!
Cue ball spinner off of Jose's bat and That's Guardsball Baby! Man on 1st, no one out and we have DeLauter and Adell coming up… Now can we get the GOAT home?
Very next pitch and before Jose could attempt a steal Chase DeLauter smashes a double and we are REALLY in business.
And again first pitch Jo Adell smashes one through the pitcher's legs that somehow goes right to Williamson, who looks Jose back and gets Adell out. UGH a massive first out for the Rays as they go to the bullpen. Not a bad job by Adell, just the very worst spot to hit it. A few inches in either direction and that hits off the pitcher's leg and Jose is on his way home. But alas, it will all come down to Nathaniel Lowe to get a run home. Nate The Great, we need ya buddy. This is the spot…
BANG! THATS WHY YOU TRADE FOR NATHANIEL LOWE!! Guards lead 4-2 in the 8th!
Flashback to 2024, the Guardians got that middle of the order bat they needed but Lane Thomas had a miserable August and outside of a nice week, a pretty crummy September too. But the one thing we (the overly optimistic, unwavering believers no matter what) kept hammering home, was that it can all be made up for with one October moment. Now, any time you say Lane Thomas, the very first thing any Cleveland fan (and honestly, a lot of other fans) thinks of is the Game 5 Grand Slam Off of Cy Young Winner Tarik Skubal. That swing alone made the Trade forever worth it.
Back to the Future and Nathaniel Lowe is in the same exact spot. He was quietly pretty poor this season in Cleveland, but a was fortunate enough to get a chance to redeem himself with October baseball. Maybe that is enough to make it worth it? In my eyes, we gotta make the lead hold before we immortalize him…
Bottom 8 and The Wild Canadian Erik Sabrowski gives up a towering BOMB to Cedric Mullins (he's everywhere!) and damn can we just have one moment without stress?!?! Fortunately this is why you score 2 (two) runs there so Sabrowski can settle in, which he did. After 8, Guardians still lead, 4-3.
And now my heart is beating out of my butt again.
In the top of the ninth, some fireworks occurred in this indoor stadium. Angel Martinez would lead off with his first hit of the postseason, and a ball would move him over to 2nd with no outs. Playoff Rocchio had 2 strikes already, so a bunt to move him over was out of the question, and then a scary foul ball had Caminero and DeLica collide in the Guardian Bullpen.
Many hearts skipped a beat and all breathes were being held during the long delay, but both players would remain in the game, and the announcers were quick to point out that Caminero is due up 5th in the bottom of the 9th. That's just great, show us the script of how we are gonna be heartbroken yet again, it will Cade be Cade? Unable to bring the run in, the Guardians would- WELL HOLD ON NOW! Before you come out to finish the job Cade, DA GOAT GOTTA DO GOAT THINGS!!
And not to be outdone, but OH are we do for a Jo Adell RBI…
BANG. Just like that and the Guardians add 3 monster insurance runs to take a 7-3 lead! Cade Smith, you still gotta come in and finish this one off, because, well yeah it's gotta be Cade…
Look, coming into tonight and this series in general, I felt way less pressure than I did in the ALDS. Don't get me wrong, this isn't "house money" or "just happy to be here" kind of situation. When you're sitting on 78 years without a World Series ring, you don't really have House Money. No, what I mean though is that this is a game the Rays shouldn't lose. Guards coming off of a long series, using all their best arms a lot, and having to turn around and play on the Road in less than 48 hours? That's a tall order. Especially when Tampa has had the rest, been home since Wednesday, and lined up their Ace to start Game 1 (even though ~we~ has that same scenario in the DS and choked it away). But even with the less pressure, it didn't make tonight any less stressful once we settled in- and that pressure I said I didn't feel, well, it arrived all the same.
But the Never-Say-Die Guardians deserve a massive amount of credit. The first third of this game and the last third were completely different teams. The Guardians scored in the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th innings, getting major clutch contributions from 5 different guys in the lineup, hitting homers, opposite field doubles, stealing bases and racking up 14 hits. And of course, the six pitchers who put together 9 really solid innings, on the road, just 48 hours after muscling through a Winner-Take-All Game 5. In a game where most thought they wouldn't even show, they dropped the hammer and clutched the hell outta this one
Guardians win Game 1. See you tomorrow in St. Pete when local hometown Hero Parker Messick takes the mound , looking to take a 2-0 lead!
Starting to feel special?
