Age Is Just A Number: Guardians Are Legitimate Playoff Contenders

Cleveland players don't care that they haven't been here before - and their tenacity on Friday afternoon proved it.

Perhaps you've heard (at least 100 times) - the Cleveland Guardians are the youngest team in baseball, and one of the youngest teams in the sport over the last 30 years.

All season long, it's been talked about how inexperienced this team is and whether or not that would allow them to stay relevant in the A.L. Central.

Making a playoff push wasn't part of anyone's vernacular publicly.

But time and time again, this team keeps proving that age is just a number and that they absolutely have what it takes to grind out tough wins.

The Guardians beat Tampa Bay 2-1 on the heels of Shane Bieber's brilliant pitching performance Friday afternoon, doing so with clutch hitting and without being phased by a mid-game deficit. Bieber blinked just once, allowing a solo homer to Jose Siri, but Jose Ramirez answered in the bottom of that same sixth inning with a 2-run shot to take the lead.

Now that they're here - and registered a comeback win - I think it's time to put the age narrative to bed.

The Guardians never used their youth as an excuse when things got tough during the season and they aren't choosing to lean into it now that they've won a playoff game (the franchise's first since October 6, 2017 when they beat the Yankees 9-8 in the A.L.D.S., snapping an 8-game losing streak).

So can we throw the youthful conversation out the window?

"Yeah, I think so," Bieber said postgame. "We don't really feel that way. It's not anything to rest our laurels on. It's something that is great, it's something that has energized us all year. At this point we're dealing with what we got in that clubhouse. And that's a winning ball club.

"That's what we try and represent. We try and represent youthful exuberance, the city of Cleveland. Just going out there and playing the game of baseball the right way, the way that we want to play it and kind of seeing where the cards fall."

"Yeah, I understand that's the messaging," said Jose Ramirez, who's 2-run homer lifted the team to a Game 1 win. "But we have to remember that despite being young it's a very talented team. So I feel with the talent we're very capable of competing with anybody."

"I'm really happy and very proud of what we did because we haven't changed the way how we played the whole year with the same intensity and same desire, nothing has changed," Amed Rosario said postgame.

It's pretty loose right now in that Guardians clubhouse as this team is full-on embracing the opportunity to make a run in October.

Baseball is a funny game and who knows how long this will last. But Friday's comeback win, in a tight game, and in fairly chilly conditions should send a signal to fans everywhere that the postseason stage isn't too big for them.

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Read More:

Watch Jose Ramirez Hit Go-Ahead Home Run vs. Tampa Bay

Bieber Dominates Rays as Guardians Take Game 1 in Wild Card Series, 2-1

Cleveland Guardians Announce Playoff Roster vs. Tampa Bay Rays

Are The Cleveland Guardians Primed For A World Series Run?

Guardians Fans Will See A Few Familiar Faces In The Wild Card Series Against The Rays

Shane Bieber Recalls Lessons From Corey Kluber As He Prepares For Wild Card Start

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