Cleveland Baseball Insider

Why This Is The Most Important Week Of The Season For The Guardians

The Guardians will face off against the White Sox and Twins this week while only 3.5 games back for the division lead.

Tommy Wild

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This time last week, the narrative around the Guardians was that they were unable to get a win against a team with a winning record. The stats backed this up too. 

But then they went out and split a two-game series with the Padres, and won three out of four games against the red-hot Blue Jays. Oh, how narratives can change. 

The Guardians can change the narrative even further this week with a couple of series wins. The Guardians are currently sitting third in the division with a 14-14 record, but they play the top two teams on the road this week.

Stop One: The Chicago White Sox

The Guardians will hit the road and head to Chicago first for a three-game series with the White Sox. The last time the Guardians played the White Sox, they swept them in three games while putting up a total of 19 runs while only allowing five. It was an exciting series for fans to watch as the offense was on full display. 

The White Sox will be determined to make sure this series goes different than the last time the two teams met. The White Sox were also navigating their way through injuries the last time they faced off against Cleveland. While some players remain out, they are starting to figure out how to play without players such as Eloy Jimenez, Joe Kelly, and Andrew Vaughn.

The White Sox have been playing some good baseball since the last time they met up with the Guardians. They currently hold a 14-13 record and sit second in the division only three games back. 

Ernie Clement Luis Robert

It will be a challenge for the Guardians who are only 7-9 on the road this season, but their resilience over the weekend against the Blue Jays showed that they can play with any team. 

The Guardians will go with Zach Plesac in game one, Cal Quantrill in game two, and Aaron Civale in game three giving them a strong starting rotation for the series. 

Stop Two: The Minnesota Twins  

The next stop of this week’s road trip will be up to Minnesota for the Guardians’ first look at this year’s Twins squad. The Twins made some massive moves over the offseason such as bringing in Carlos Correa and Gary Sanchez. Byron Buxton is also having a resurgent year after missing much of 2021 with injuries. This season he is hitting .278 with nine home runs and 17 RBI. 

They currently sit at the top of the division with an 18-11 record. The Twins look like the clear favorites to win the division but are still a very beatable team. Especially with players like Franmil Reyes, Owen Miller, and Josh Naylor starting to heat up.

When it is all said and done, if the Guardians can win these series, they can come out of the week with an 18-16 record. Who knows where that would place them in the division? 

You can’t win the division in May, but you certainly can come close to losing it with a bad stretch of baseball. Winning these series would certainly put the Guardians in the thick of the division race and establish them as an AL Central contender.

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Tommy Wild
TOMMY WILD

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