Guardians Season Could Come Down To Upcoming Series With Twins

The Cleveland Guardians visit the Minnesota Twins as they look to make up ground in the American League Central race.

Tommy Wild | Aug 28, 2023

Guardians Season Could Come Down To Upcoming Series With Twins /

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The Cleveland Guardians have taken a step back from what the team was in 2022 when they won the American League Central and went to the ALDS. Their offense has largely struggled all season, the bullpen is much more of a liability, and the starting rotation has struggled to stay healthy.

However, they aren't out of the playoff picture just yet even with all of this going on. Cleveland kicks off a crucial three-game set with the division-leading Minnesota Twins which could determine whether the Guardians are a playoff team or not.

No, that isn't being dramatic.

The Twins enter the series with a 6.0-game lead over the Guardians for first place in the Central. Cleveland's only real chance of playing postseason baseball is by winning the division because the Wild Card is out of the picture.

If the Guardians can pull off a sweep or series victory over Minnesota then they will be right back in the thick of the race entering the final month of play. But if the Twins beat Cleveland over the next three days then the Guardians could drop as low as third in the division and shift their eyes to 2024.

These two teams do have one more series next week, but the Guardians need to begin their attack now or it'll be too late.

There is a silver lining in all of this. Cleveland has largely struggled against their own division this year, but the same can't be said for when they play the Twins. The Guardians have taken four out of three games against Minnesota so far this season and have pitched very well against them.

Xzavion Curry, Gavin Williams, and Tanner Bibee are scheduled to start for the Guardians over the next three days and they'll be tasked with holding down Minnesota's offense.

The Guardians will need to be ready to score some runs because that's the one area where they've struggled against the Twins. Even though Cleveland has won more games against their opponent, the Twins have still scored more runs. The Guardians own a .212 batting average and a .544 OPS against Minnesota.

Catching Minnesota won't be easy for Cleveland, but it's not impossible either.

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Published Aug 28, 2023