The Cleveland Guardians achieved their two primary objectives in the regular season: make the playoffs and win the AL Central. The Chicago White Sox certainly made things interesting until the last weekend, but Stephen Vogt and his players got the job done for the third straight campaign.
Now, while most squads will risk early elimination in the Wild Card round, the Guardians, as the second seed in the American League, are waiting for the winner of the White Sox-Houston Astros series. Cleveland will take on the victor starting on Saturday.
As things currently stand, and with how the Division Series is scheduled, the Guardians have a significant competitive advantage. Cleveland sports content creator Adam Gerstenhaber explains:
“The ALDS lines up perfectly because not only do they get a bye, which I like for them in particular, but because of the three days off in that series, the way it’s scheduled. Gavin Williams and Parker Messick can pitch, in theory, if the series went five games, they could pitch four of those five. I think they can get to the World Series. In fact, I’m predicting them to lose the World Series to the Braves. That’s my prediction. I hope I’m wrong about that last part,” Gerstenhaber said.
"The ALDS lines up perfectly. I think they can get to the World Series. In fact, I'm predicting them to lose the World Series to the Braves. That's my prediction."
📞 @adamthebull w/ @JPeterlin and @Spencito_ on the #Guardians going into the postseason ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/oUbitaSb0C
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) September 28, 2026
The Division Series can go to a maximum of five games. Thanks to how the series is set up schedule-wise, Cleveland can use Parker Messick and Gavin Williams in four of them, which is significant.
As a reminder, Messick is one of the favorites to win the AL Rookie of the Year Award after finishing the regular season with a 2.56 ERA and 193 strikeouts. He is also a likely AL Cy Young Award finalist alongside Dylan Cease and Cam Schlittler, the overwhelming favorite for the hardware. He’s been that good.
Williams posted a good-but-not-great 3.76 ERA, but led the American League with 248 strikeouts, just four shy of MLB leader Jacob Misiorowski. He is someone the Guardians want on the mound in big games because he is the most likely to toss a seven-inning, zero-run gem with 12 punchouts.
For that game in which neither Williams nor Messick can pitch, Cleveland has All-Star Foster Griffin and the rock-solid Joey Cantillo, who flourished in September with an opener in front of him. Tanner Bibee is also an option.
With this advantage, a quality bullpen, and a surging offense, the Guardians have enough to take on either the White Sox or the Astros and leave them behind. Whether they have enough to get past the Championship Series, as Gerstenhaber suggests they will, remains to be seen.
NEXT: Analysts Reveal What's Fueling Guardians Postseason Run
