The Cleveland Guardians miraculously overcame a 15.5-game AL Central deficit over the Detroit Tigers, a team that had the worst record in baseball in the month of September. The Guardians accomplished this feat thanks to a few factors. First, the Tigers had been a bad baseball team since late July. A team like the Guardians doesn't overcome such a deficit without a willing opponent. Second, Cleveland got a lot of contributions from players who, frankly, wouldn't be contributors on most playoff teams. No one knew this more than the Tigers, which fell victim to 'Guards ball' all too often down the stretch.
Cleveland can have its Guards ball. It was fun while it lasted, but to win in the postseason, teams need consistent pitching and power bats. Detroit doesn't necessarily have that in abundance, but Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson have 30-plus home run power. Cleveland has Jose Ramirez and a mix of players who, despite some potential in their bats, failed to come through when it mattered most.
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What is Guards ball, and why didn't it translate to playoff success?
And I say this as a Tigers fan. Despite winning the series, Cleveland had every opportunity to make the Tigers look like the chokers they truly are. Detroit was a combined 1-for-23 with runners in scoring position in the first two games of this series. While the Guardians took advantage of Detroit's failures in Game 2, they were silenced by Tarik Skubal and the Tigers bullpen in Game 1. Against the best pitchers in baseball, this Guardians lineup cannot cut it – and luck has a lot to do with their recent success.
Guards ball, as Stephen Vogt even defined it, is essentially putting the ball in play and hoping for the best. The Guardians have a lineup full of players with an OPS under .700. Outside of Ramirez, there is no real threat to open the game up. Unless Cleveland ran into a team like the Tigers – with all the pressure on their shoulders – they were unlikely to advance far this postseason. Heck, against Skubal, all of the Guardians hits didn't register more than 400 feet. In Game 2, Cleveland had one home run which went further than all of those base knocks.
The Guardians are cute, but they do not represent modern baseball. Cleveland plays like they belong in 'The Glory of their Times', one of the best baseball books I've ever read, but one that was written in 1966 about players who played in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. In fact, let me prove that very fact:
- "The base paths belonged to me, the runner. The rules gave me the right. I always went into a bag full speed, feet first. I had sharp spikes on my shoes. If the baseman stood where he had no business to be and got hurt, that was his fault."
- "You might think this is all a lot of malarkey, but I really believe baseball was a more exciting game back in those days."
- "For sheer excitement, I don't think anything can beat when you see that guy go tearing around the bases and come sliding into third or into the plate."
I could go on, but these Guardians belong in a different era, you see. And their brand on baseball is a joke, you see. And they haven't won a World Series since 1948 and counting! Read all about it right here on FanSided!
The Tigers did baseball a favor, but not in the way they think
I am a fan of baseball history, so I'll never bash the Guardians for going back a century to find a way to defeat the Tigers in the AL Central. They ought to hang a banner next season, and enjoy their accomplishment. It's an accolade no one saw coming, even if it's participation-based per this author. However, what the Tigers did on Thursday – keeping Cleveland out of the ALDS – is good on all accounts.
First, the Tigers were one of the best teams in baseball for most of this season. If they were to somehow beat the Seattle Mariners – which I would not bet on – then baseball fans should consider it a win. Detroit hasn't won a World Series since 1984, and they righted the ship at the perfect time. Much like the 2006 season, when the Tigers blew a late Central lead to the Minnesota Twins but made the World Series, October is all that matters. If the Mariners win, it provides baseball with a marketing rarity.
The Mariners have never even appeared in the World Series. They are my pick to do so this season, and they've earned that right. If Bryan Woo can rejoin their rotation sometime in October, this team should have the talent to end one of baseball's greatest World Series droughts. Facing a Tigers team that is just a week removed from a brutal collapse is a victory in its own right for Seattle.