The Cleveland Guardians entered Thursday’s action ranked 13th in baseball with a 102 wRC+. Those who have followed the team in recent seasons know that it represents a huge step forward in comparison to the 2023, 2024, and 2025 units.
Last year, the Guardians ranked 28th in wRC+ with an 87 mark. In 2024, they were a bit better, but still in the bottom half at 16th. The 2023 team was 24th in wRC+ with 91. As you can see, offense doesn’t usually carry this organization.
These Guardians are looking more dangerous at the plate, without being an elite run-scoring team. Part of their DNA is to do damage with two outs, as no squad in the American League is better than them at that.
The team lost on Wednesday to the St. Louis Cardinals, but all three runs they scored came with two outs. It’s the continuation of an ongoing trend that makes Cleveland one of the most annoying squads in the junior circuit.
“Over their last seven games, the Guardians have scored 20 of their 39 runs with two outs, more than half (51.3%). On the season, Cleveland has plated 38 of its 75 runs with two outs (50.7%), the highest rate in the American League,” MLB.com’s Zach Sweet wrote.
Many rallies in MLB start with two outs, so even though pitchers believe they have the inning wrapped up, and batters tend to think they can’t do anything anymore when there are two outs, the Guardians have embraced the fact that they are hard to put away.
It’s not a strategy: no team goes to the batter’s box with the idea of giving up two outs and then starting to think about getting on base. But the stat shows resilience and a refusal to go down without a fight.
What this offense lacks in elite star-level talent beyond Jose Ramirez, it makes up for it with grit and fight. They won’t go down easily, and they fight for every out and every pitch.
It’s part of the Guardians’ identity, you might say. The inning isn’t over until the third out takes place, and Cleveland is making sure to remind its foes about that.
NEXT: A Long Drought May Finally Be Over In Cleveland
