Don’t look now, but the Cleveland Guardians are suddenly among the hottest teams in baseball, which is hard to believe after they limped out of the All-Star break by losing 18 of their first 28 games in the second half. They have tied their longest winning streak of the season as they get set to host the Kansas City Royals, who just lost an improbable nine-game winning streak of their own.
Cleveland has been able to take advantage of a soft stretch in its schedule to get back into the thick of the playoff race. The Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers are now in the rearview mirror in the AL Central race, and many fans and insiders are starting to believe that this team has what it takes to make it to October once again.
In a recent appearance on The Golics, ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian said that he’s leaning towards the Guardians as the favorite to claim the final Wild Card spot in the American League.
“This is a question I’ve been asking myself every day and every day I switch teams because everyone seems to still be in it. I’m going to say the Guardians are the team that I think is going to win that last Wild Card spot because they’re such a great finishing team. Look what they did last year. They haven’t been the same team here lately, but they’re now starting to play better,” said Kurkjian.
Who's going to take the last American League Wild Card spot??@Kurkjian_ESPN on why he's leaning towards the Guardians ⬇️ https://t.co/7FQg2qALC7 pic.twitter.com/QMQIb9LS9U
— The Golics (@thegolics) August 27, 2026
Kurkjian added that he believes in two-time Manager of the Year Stephen Vogt to find ways for this team to consistently score runs and pointed out that Jose Ramirez is starting to round into form for the first time since returning from his broken hamate bone. The Guardians won’t need to overcome the same kind of deficit they did last season since they now trail the Chicago White Sox in the division by just 2.5 games, but they now have a small cushion in the Wild Card as well to alleviate a little pressure.
They can’t get comfortable yet, but they do have a two-game lead for that third spot ahead of the Texas Rangers heading into this Royals series. There are a lot of teams gunning for them, but of the six closest teams in the Wild Card standings, five of the six have lost at least half of their games over the last ten, so nobody is emerging as a legitimate threat of late.
Power at the plate remains an issue, but the Jo Adell trade has helped in that department. This team is looking more like a contender lately, but they can’t take their foot off the gas just yet despite winning seven in a row. The Royals are not to be taken lightly, so we’ll see if Cleveland can keep the ball rolling against a division rival this weekend.
NEXT: Analyst Reveals What Guardians Must Still Improve On
