Three Guardians Who Will Be Vital For A Guardians ALCS Victory Over Yankees

Jose Ramirez, Kyle Manzardo, and Gavin Williams will be players to watch in the Cleveland Guardians ALCS matchup against the New York Yankees.

Oct 10, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Cleveland Guardians first base Kyle Manzardo (9) hits a single in the first inning against the Detroit Pistons during game four of the ALDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images / Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians received key contributions from some unlikely heroes in their ALDS victory over the Detroit Tigers. If Cleveland hopes to advance to the World Series, it'll need a similar group of players to step up against the New York Yankees in the ALCS.

However, this time, the cast of characters could be slightly different. These three Guardians will be vital to an ALCS victory over the Yankees.

Jose Ramirez

The Guardians need their stars to be stars in this series, starting with superstar Jose Ramirez. J-Ram had a slow start to the ALDS but had a strong finish with two hits, including a home run and an RBI single, in the final two games.

This is a sign that Ramirez is finally settling into a postseason groove at the plate.

Plus, Jose has historically hit very well against the Yankees, with a .333/.399/.569 slash line and a .968 OPS against New York in his career. He even hits better as an opposing batter in Yankee Stadium, which could be critical in the series' first two games.

Aaron Boone shut down all narratives on Sunday, saying that Ramirez is underrated. They know how good he is, and the Guardians need him to perform in the ALCS.

May 2, 2023; Bronx, New York, USA; Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) hits a single in the fifth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Kyle Manzardo

Kyle Manzardo only had six at-bats and one hit in the ALDS. However, that had more to do with Detroit's numerous lefty arms in their pitching rotation than anything else. Manzardo had a .270/.333/.540 slash line in September and was swinging one of the hottest bats heading into the playoffs.

The Yankees don't have nearly the same stockpile of southpaws as the Tigers and New York has already committed to starting righties Gerrit Cole, Clark Schmidt, and Luis Gil in Games 2 through 4 of the series.

Their sole lefty starter, Carlos Rodon, will be on the mound in Game 1, so Manzardo is unlikely to get the start then. But after that, he should be in the lineup more often than not, and the Guardians are going to need him to do exactly what he did at the end of the regular season at the plate.

Gavin Williams

Gavin Williams hasn't pitched in a major league game in almost three weeks. His season was cut short when Cleveland's final regular-season game was canceled due to rain. However, this is the playoffs, and everyone needs to be ready when called upon.

Willilams may be one of the players on Cleveland's roster who's asked to step up in a big way during the ALCS. With the last series being a best-of-five set and off days in between, the Guardians could get away with a three-man rotation. That's not going to work in a seven-game series.

Cleveland will need to add another pitcher to the rotation, and Williams makes the most sense to fill that void.