Three Observations From Guardians Loss To Marlins, 3-2

The Cleveland Guardians fall to the Miami Marlins in the series opener because of their struggles hitting while having RISP.

Jun 7, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez (0) strikes out to end the game against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports / Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Guardians lost their second straight game as the Miami Marlins took the series opener on Friday night be a final score of 3-2.

Here are three observations and takeaways from the loss. 

Aggressive Base Running

The Guardians' aggressive base running game plan was on display in the series opener. However, this time it backfired on them.

Tyler Freeman led off the game with a double and the Guardians had a chance to get early runs on the board in the first inning. However, he tried to catch Marlins pitcher Ryan Weathers sleeping and was picked off on a steal attempt in the third inning. Gabriel Arias then got caught stealing with two outs in the second inning. Daniel Schneemann led off the eighth inning with a triple but was cut out at home trying to score on a Jose Ramirez pop-out to right field.

Cleveland shouldn’t abandon this strategy. But this loss was proof that it won’t always work in their favor. 

Jun 7, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Marlins third baseman Emmanuel Rivera (15) tags out Cleveland Guardians center fielder Tyler Freeman (2) trying to steal third base in the first inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports / Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports

Guardians’ Struggles With RISP

One reason the Guardians have gotten off to such a shot start is due to their success with hitting with runners in scoring position. Unfortunately, that was their kryptonite in the series loss to the Marlins.

Cleveland was 0-for-6 with RISP on Friday night.

The most crucial shortcoming came after Cleveland failed to get Schneemann home after his leadoff triple in the eighth. Brayan Rocchio flied out to right field and then Ramirez popped out to right field followed by Schneemann being caught out at home which ended the inning.

Cleveland needs to figure out a way to get back to converting in these situations. 

Gabriel Arias Defense 

Let’s wrap this up in a lighter tone. One of the biggest standouts from this game was Gabriel Arias’ defense at third base - he was incredible at the hot corner!

Arias made six infield throws on Friday night with two of those being 90+ mph. His hardest-thrown ball was 96.6 mph which resulted in an out at first.

There are still concerns at the plate that are holding Arias back from being an everyday player. But this performance on defense is a reminder of just how naturally gifted he is on defense.