Guardians' Glorious Month Of June

The Cleveland Guardians had one of the best offenses in MLB during the month of June.

In retrospect, the Cleveland Guardians did not have a great season when it came to their offense. They were looking for some consistency all year and that never came around.

However, none of that was the case in June. The Guardians had a fantastic month and were one of the best teams in baseball, specifically with their bats, during that 30-day stretch. It may be hard to believe that the Guardians team that finished 10 games under .500 had an elite offense at one point, but that's exactly what happened.

Let's take a deeper look at this glorious month.

As a team, Cleveland had a slash line of .279/.335/.423 and an OPS of .758. Their batting average was the highest in the American League and second-highest in all of baseball. The only team that had a higher batting average than the Guardians was the Atlanta Braves, who were one of the best offensive teams all seasons despite their early playoff exit. 

The Guardians also had the third most hits in baseball with 257 as a team which was top three in MLB during the month.

Perhaps one of the reasons that June was challenging to replicate was that the team was being carried by two players. As they began to cool down, so did the rest of the offense. These two hitters who really helped the Guardians get to the position, are Josh Naylor and Jose Ramirez.

Starting with Naylor, he had a batting average of .370 and an OPS of .923. Cleveland's first baseman also drove in 18 runs and a couple of home runs on top of that too. Naylor had a slow start to the season but the end of May and into June was when he really broke out as one of the team's best hitters.

Jun 23, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) celebrates after hitting a home run during the seventh inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports / © Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Jose's mouth was just as impressive as Naylor's. He hit five doubles, two triples seven home runs, and recorded 23 RBI. All of this added up to an OPS of 1.030 which was top 10 in baseball during this month. 

The beginning of July was another month in which the Guardians' offense carried over from June and thrived in the hot summer days. However, the offense dropped off after this and Cleveland fell out of the AL Central race without being able to score runs. 

The silver lining is that the lineup does have a base of Ramirez and Naylor they can build around. This could've been a glimpse of what the Guardians can do with their bats if they add the right pieces around them. 

Hopefully, 2024 is full of more months that look like June.