The Cleveland Guardians offense hasn’t been particularly sharp in recent games.
They have scored one or zero runs in three of their last four games, and have produced three or fewer runs within the first nine innings of each of their last five games.
Of course, it’s difficult to establish any kind of consistency when your leadoff hitter and your middle-of-the-order producer are both struggling at the same time.
This is the case of the Guardians with Steven Kwan and Josh Naylor.
Both stars carried the offense, along with Jose Ramirez, in the first half and the earlier portion of the summer.
J-Ram has remained steady to this day, though, but Kwan and Naylor’s performance has dipped.
“2nd Half; Kwan – .217/.297/.339/.636. Naylor – .230/.306/.410/.716. I only see people talking about Naylor, though, and I’m not sure why,” Guardians of the Land tweeted.
2nd Half
Kwan – .217/.297/.339/.636
Naylor – .230/.306/.410/.716I only see people talking about Naylor, though, and I'm not sure why.
— Guardians of The Land (@OurCLEGuardians) August 22, 2024
The fourth portion of the slash line would be the OPS over that span.
The tweet contains a fact and an opinion.
Kwan and Naylor’s second-half stats are facts: they can’t be denied, and they prove how ineffective they have been in recent weeks.
Both were All-Star caliber players, so it’s frustrating to see them struggle to put up the numbers everyone knows they are capable of.
It’s understandable to some extent, though: the season is 162 games long, spanning over six months.
It’s not easy to remain at your sharpest for such an extended period.
Slumps happen, and no one is immune to them.
Even New York Yankees star Aaron Judge slumped to open the season.
Kwan and Naylor are both talented enough to find answers to what’s ailing their performance, though.
NEXT: Cleveland Loses Badly In New York As Twins And Royals Get Closer In The Central
