Three Observations From Guardians Win Over Pirates, 10-8

The Cleveland Guardians take down the Pittsburgh Pirates in their series opener.

Aug 30, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez, right, and shortstop Brayan Rocchio celebrate after Gimenez hit a home run during the fifth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports / Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Game one of the Cleveland Guardians and Pittsburgh Pirates three-game series goes to the Guardians, as they won 10-8.

Here are three observations and takeaways from Cleveland's latest win.

Ben Lively Becomes Frustrated

Lively was clearly unhappy with how his outing finished on Friday. He was visibly mad in the dugout after giving up six earned runs in just 4.1 innings of work. He let out some of leaving the game and let out that frustration on a nearby water cooler and threw his mitt to the ground.

Lively's biggest issue in this start was putting batters away. He was throwing strikes and didn't have any problems with his command, but whenever a Pirates hitter got deep in a count, they ended up getting a hit.

Brayan Rocchio's Questionable Play

Brayan Rocchio tried to pull off a highlight play in the top of the fifth inning when the Guardians had a four-run lead.

He attempted to flip it behind his back to Andres Gimenez at second, but the ball sailed in the air, and both runners were safe. With just one out and a runner on first base, he should have taken the sure out and thrown the ball to first.

This set up a massive six-run inning for the Pirates, who took the lead after a strong offensive start from the Guardians. Thankfully, Cleveland's bats continued to roll and this play didn't come back to bite them.

However, this is just a reminder that the safe play is always the best option, and this was the same message Stephen Vogt had after the game.

Aug 30, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez (0) celebrates after hitting a home run during the fifth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports / Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Andres Gimenez, Jhonkensy Noel Go Back-To-Back

There were a lot of exciting moments from this game, including Emmanuel Clase becoming Cleveland's all-time saves leader, but Jhonkensy Noel and Andres Gimenez hitting back-to-back home runs might've been the highlight of the game.

Noel started it off with a go-ahead two-run homer, and Gimenez followed that up with a solo shot of his own.

Cleveland's offense has been looking for a little extra life over the last few weeks, and homers like these could be exactly what it needs to get going again.