The Cleveland Guardians craved some home cooking.
They desperately needed to head back home after winning just three of their first nine games, all of those on the road.
They responded to a warm welcome by sweeping the Chicago White Sox in a three-game series before going 2-1 against the Kansas City Royals.
That’s why Ben Lively used the word ‘epic,’ to describe the six-game homestand:
“Epic,” Lively answered when asked how he thinks the Guardians battled this homestand. “We all knew on the road trip we needed just to get back to Cleveland—get back with the people back here. We took off, and now everyone’s feeling that, and now we’re ready go back on the road, help keep it feeling how we had it here.”
Unfortunately, the veteran hurler couldn’t close it out with a win.
He allowed four runs on seven hits in six frames, including a game-tying two-run blast to Salvador Perez in the fourth inning.
With that outing, he’s now allowed at least one home run in three of his four starts this season, and that will most definitely be a point of emphasis for the coaching staff moving forward.
Even so, all in all, it was a solid outing.
The Guardians will now pack their bags and leave home again for their next six games vs. the Baltimore Orioles and Pittsburgh Pirates.
They’re now 8-7 on the season, and while the Royals snapped their five-game winning streak, the homestand gave this team the motivational boost they so clearly needed after a shaky start to the campaign.
Their once-great bullpen has been nowhere to be found this season, with even Emmanuel Clase, who’s widely considered the best closer in the game, having struggled.
Still, the regular season is a long grind, and you’re never as bad as you look in the first month of the season.
NEXT: Stephen Vogt Gets Honest About Guardians After Loss To Royals
