The Cleveland Guardians are still alive in the AL Wild Card race.
That didn’t seem possible weeks ago, yet here they are.
More importantly, they just took the first game of a crucial series against one of the few teams that could pass them for the final playoff spot.
That’s why analyst Tony Rizzo likes Cleveland’s chances, not only to make the playoffs but to actually go on a run.
Talking on ESPN Cleveland’s “The Really Big Show,” Rossi predicted that the Guardians can make some noise in the postseason.
“They’re three games over .500, soon to be four or five games over. … I’ve seen baseball enough to know, you just get yourself into the playoffs and you get one or two hot pitchers, and you can win a series, and lo and behold, you’re in the ALCS,” Rizzo said.
Do you think the Guardians will make the playoffs this year? pic.twitter.com/RN6DZYjNUU
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) September 9, 2025
If the Guardians do make the playoffs, they will have been in postseason mode for more than a month.
That type of mindset and focus can take a team to great heights.
Conversely, teams have rolled into the postseason and then fall short because they’ve taken their foot off the gas down the stretch.
Baseball is a sport of streaks, and all it takes is for a couple of players to get hot at the right time to do something special.
Of course, the Guardians need to get there, and they can’t afford to get ahead of themselves.
They have a couple of Game 7-like matchups with the Kansas City Royals to keep their postseason hopes alive, but that’s only the beginning of this crucial final stretch.
NEXT: Guardians Keep Playoff Hopes Alive Despite Losing Key Players
