The Cleveland Guardians avoided a sweep on Wednesday, beating the Chicago White Sox 4-3 in extras and forcing a tie in first place of the AL Central. They did it despite their closer, Cade Smith, allowing two runs and blowing a save.
In the last few years, Cleveland has developed a reputation for playing “Guards Ball”, a brand of baseball that prioritizes grit, strong pitching, aggressiveness on the basepaths, sacrifice bunts, and creative ways of scoring runs.
On Wednesday, they reminded the world about another element of their identity: strong defense.
First, it was Travis Bazzana being alert and showing insane awareness and a quick release, catching a liner and doubling off Miguel Vargas in the opening frame.
Then, Brayan Rocchio made a nice leaping grab to retire Kyle Teel for the first out in the fourth. It takes some impeccable timing to jump and make that play.
Brayan Rocchio pulls in the reception and completes the process of the catch. pic.twitter.com/4KEK321MGK
— Tim Stebbins (@tim_stebbins) June 24, 2026
In the seventh inning, with the Guardians up 2-1, a runner on second base and two outs, Randal Grichuk hit a screaming liner that looked like a game-tying extra-base hit. However, Steven Kwan reminded the world why he is a four-time Gold Glove Award winner:
Steven Kwan ran in from left field to the Guardians' dugout during the mid-inning pitching change to talk to outfield coach JT Maguire. He just kept Cleveland in front with a great catch. pic.twitter.com/1vNn9mu32k
— Tim Stebbins (@tim_stebbins) June 24, 2026
After that, it was Kyle Manzardo’s turn. Not really known for his glove, the first baseman made a game-saving play for the last out.
With Cleveland up 4-3 in the bottom of the tenth, and the White Sox having loaded the bases against Shawn Armstrong with two outs, Braden Montgomery hit a hard ground ball towards first base. Manzardo fielded it cleanly and raced to the base, diving head-first to beat the batter-runner and finish the game.
The Guardians might be missing three regulars in their lineup: Jose Ramirez, Angel Martinez, and Chase DeLauter. Their offense might be mediocre, and their bullpen a tad inconsistent. You can’t say they don’t play hard and that they don’t prioritize defense, though.
Everyone on the roster knows they each have to do a bit more over the next few weeks to make up for the aforementioned absences. On Wednesday, you can say they pulled off the win largely because their defense got key outs in crucial moments.
That’s also part of their identity. They decided that it’s time for the world to get a reminder about that.
NEXT: Guardians Escape Disaster Late, Win In Extra Innings
