This Amazing Fact Reveals Cleveland Guardians' Organizational Greatness

The Cleveland Guardians' organization is one of the best in baseball.

Sep 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt celebrates with his players after the Guardians beat the Minnesota Twins and clinched a playoff berth at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians have won the AL Central division title for the second time in three years, once again defying the odds heading into the season.

So, how do the Guardians keep doing this? How do they keep exceeding expectations?

Well, it starts with their organizational culture.

Jon Morosi of MLB Network has revealed an incredible stat about Cleveland, noting that only three players on its current roster were acquired via free agency: starting pitchers Ben Lively and Matthew Boyd and backup catcher Austin Hedges.

That's it.

The rest of the Guardians' players are either homegrown or were landed via shrewd trades.

Cleveland is known for being a cost-conscious franchise. But so are plenty of other teams around baseball, and those clubs don't have the track record of the Guardians.

It just goes to show how superior Cleveland's scouting department is when compared to the rest of the MLB and how terrific the franchise's player development is.

Make no mistake: this Guardians roster is flawed. Their starting rotation has been a major issue all season, and their lineup depth is questionable, at best.

However, Cleveland has managed to scrap together a 90-win ballclub that will be joining payroll behemoths like the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies in the playoffs, and that is truly a tremendous feat.

What's more, this represents the Guardians' sixth trip to the postseason since 2016. That in spite of regularly ranking near the bottom of baseball in dollars spent.

Now, we'll see if Cleveland can finally nab its first World Series championship since 1948.