The Cleveland Guardians have to close out the season on a high note.
That will obviously be way easier said than done.
We’re talking about a team that has struggled at the plate from the very start of the season, and while they’ve had some offensive explosions every now and then, they ultimately end up regressing to the mean.
That, according to Paul Hoynes, will be the biggest obstacle to get past if they want to reach the postseason:
“If the Guardians are going to make the postseason, their biggest obstacle will be their own hot and cold offense. The Guardians rank last among MLB’s 30 teams in batting average (.224), hits (1,028) and on-base percentage (.294). They rank 29th in OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) and 27th in runs (547). While the Royals have scored fewer runs than the Guardians this season, the White Sox have scored more. Last year, the White Sox lost a modern-day record 121 games,” Hoynes wrote.
With Saturday’s big win, the Guardians moved past the Tampa Bay Rays in the wild card race.
At the time of writing, they’re 2.5 games behind the Seattle Mariners for the final spot in the American League.
Their chances of catching up to the Detroit Tigers at the top of the American League Central Division are quite slim at the moment, but with six games against them still pending, there’s a chance.
Even if that’s not the case, they can still finish the season strong and sneak into the playoffs.
For that to happen, they will need to find some luck at the plate.
They’ve already shown what they look like when they’re at their best, but they’ve also gotten into some head-scratching slumps.
It’s now or never for this team.
There’s no margin for error anymore, but at least, they’ve shown that they’re resilient and determined enough to keep fighting and pushing through adversity regardless of the context, the team, or how difficult the task seems to be.
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