The Cleveland Guardians have had a tough schedule to this point, with three series against legitimate World Series contenders. They have been more than good enough, though, winning six out of their first 10 games vs. the Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Chicago Cubs.
The Guardians are yet to lose a series, and playing against top-tier squads actually keeps their focus where it needs to be. That’s what starting pitcher Slade Cecconi believes, as he told Cleveland.com.
“We knew that this first couple of weeks, but especially this whole first month is going to show us where we are because we’re playing playoff baseball in April,” Cecconi said, per Joe Noga. “Every team we play is a playoff contender. We’re facing big arms, big stuff. Our hitters are being challenged early. Our pitchers are being challenged early. And it’s great. We get to see exactly where we stand in April, and we get to see exactly what adjustments we need to make early in the season.”
It’s certainly a mature way to see it. Facing the AL West champs, the World Series winners, and then a 92-win team that was one of the NL Wild Cards in strict succession kept the Guardians on their toes, and they responded to the challenge admirably.
Cecconi talked about the need to make adjustments early in the season, and he is the living image of that phrase. In his first start of the season against the Mariners on March 29, he surrendered six earned runs in 4.1 innings.
It was a cold Seattle night, and Cecconi’s velocity was down on all his pitches. On Sunday, however, he was utterly dominant with six scoreless frames in which he surrendered a hit, a walk, and a hit by pitch while striking out six Chicago Cubs batters.
The rough schedule continues on Monday as the Guardians get ready to face a division foe for three games with direct standings implications: the Kansas City Royals.
Kansas City was over .500 last year (82-80) and actually had a better run differential than the Guardians. They remain a dangerous team and want to return to October this season.
After that, Cleveland will travel to Atlanta to play the Braves, another expected postseason contender. If you want to be the best, you have to consistently beat the best. It’s as simple as that.
NEXT: Guardians Are Already Defying Odds Against Top-Tier Teams
