The Cleveland Guardians put together an impressive late rally on Sunday to beat the Seattle Mariners 6-5. They have now won their last two games and three of their last four.
These positive stretches, in this particular moment of the season, are extremely important for Cleveland. The team is under scrutiny because some people are expecting them to collapse and fall apart without two of their best hitters: Jose Ramirez and Angel Martinez.
The whole squad is playing with a chip on their shoulder. They are trying to show the world that they can compete even with some key injuries.
Analyst Matt Dery certainly acknowledged the importance of Sunday’s win, not only because it came against a potential contender, the Mariners, but basically because it allowed them to secure a series. The Guardians were able to take two out of three against a team that came one win short of the World Series last year.
“You’ve got to stay afloat. You just have to stay around, playing .500 baseball without Jose and Angel Martinez, and hopefully make a run here. Yesterday’s win was enormous. They beat a good team. Kwan and Manzardo gotta get going, they just have to,” Dery said.
"You just have to play around .500 baseball without Jose and Angel Martinez. Yesterday's win was enormous… Kwan and Manzardo gotta get going."
📞@DerySpeaks on the Guardians season outlook pic.twitter.com/wFDycGUfYd
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) June 29, 2026
While the analyst sees the big picture and treats the win as it was, a huge one, he also notes that two struggling players need to turn things around in the short term if they want to survive this current stretch without Ramirez and Martinez. Those two hitters are Steven Kwan and Kyle Manzardo.
Manzardo had a brutal start to the season, then picked it up in May and June, and is now cold again. His last extra-base hit came nine days ago, and his last RBI was a week ago.
Still, the lefty slugger has nine homers and a 101 wRC+ for the year as a whole, so he has been far from a disaster. Kwan, on the other hand, represents a much bigger problem.
With the former All-Star outfielder struggling to the tune of a .210/.319/.256 line and a 70 wRC+, some have even suggested he should go to the minor leagues to work on his game. He looks lost at the plate, with one of the slowest swings in the game, and is currently a liability.
If those two players manage to get hot, Cleveland’s short-term outlook would improve considerably. The team, however, has shown they can still at least compete without their best versions.
NEXT: Stephen Vogt Sends Big Message After Sunday's Win
