Guardians Still Aren’t Proving Themselves In Latest Power Rankings

The Cleveland Guardians may be starting to turn things around after a rough month coming out of the All-Star break. They just swept a three-game series from the Colorado Rockies, and they have closed to within 3.5 games of the first-place Chicago White Sox in the AL Central.

However, the Guardians are still one game under .500 with 31 games left to play. So, Cleveland does have some work to do to get back to the playoffs for a third straight year.

Despite being tied for the final AL Wild Card, the Guardians still aren’t proving themselves in MLB.com’s latest power rankings, falling from No. 17 to No. 18.

“Any team (and especially its offense) will look better when it gets to play the Rockies at Coors Field, but still: The Guardians will take runs however they can get them. One way they’re getting them is from trade acquisition Jo Adell. His 15 RBIs in his first 16 games with the Guardians were the most in a player’s first 16 games with Cleveland for more than a decade,” Will Leitch wrote.

Cleveland had not won any of its first nine series coming out of the break, a stretch that included an embarrassing sweep by the New York Mets. The Guardians also dropped two out of three in important divisional matchups against the White Sox and Detroit Tigers.

But they have since won two series in a row. After taking two of three from the San Francisco Giants, the Guardians easily handled the Rockies, outscoring them 20-6 at Coors Field.

That offensive surge was led by Adell, who has six hits and six RBIs in the three games. The outfielder also had a six-RBI game against the Giants, when he was fortunate to avoid injury after fouling a pitch off his leg.

Adell is not the only trade deadline acquisition contributing in a big way for the Guardians. Starting pitcher Foster Griffin won his third straight decision on Sunday, and he has given up just four earned runs in 16.0 innings during those outings.

Cleveland has one of the easiest remaining schedules in the American League, which should help it compete for at least a wild card. Entering play Monday, the Guardians are tied with the Texas Rangers for the third and final spot, but there are five other teams within 3.5 games.

The Guardians finish their road trip with a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels before returning to Cleveland for a 10-game homestand against the Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays and Tigers.