The Cleveland Guardians secured their third straight postseason berth on Thursday night, blanking the Boston Red Sox 1-0 at Fenway Park. Even though there was a celebration in the visitors’ clubhouse, and deservedly so, everybody in Cleveland knows the job is not done.
Right now, with three games to play in the regular season, the Guardians have a one-game lead in the AL Central over the Chicago White Sox. Their primary goal, after securing their presence in October, should be winning their division because the benefits of doing so would be huge.
Analyst Aaron Goldhammer reminded people that Chicago has an easy opponent on paper for the weekend, and Cleveland might need to sweep to achieve their goal.
“I think you still need to try and find a way to win that division if you really want to go on a run here. They have a one-game lead. They have to play the Royals. The White Sox get the Rockies. Do you think the Guardians have to sweep in order to win the division? I do,” Goldhammer said.
"I think you still need to try and find a way to win that division," – @HammerNation19 on the Guardians chasing the AL Central title. pic.twitter.com/9QpNzE4aFD
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) September 25, 2026
The Guardians have a four-game lead over the two teams leading the AL West (the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers are tied at 79-80), with three games remaining. None of them can finish with a better record than Cleveland.
That’s huge, because the only thing separating the Guardians from the second seed, which brings with it a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the Division Series, is the White Sox. If Cleveland can finish with a better record than Chicago, they will capture their third straight division title and start their postseason journey in the best-of-five Division Series.
If, on the contrary, the White Sox leapfrog the Guardians or even tie them at the top (Chicago owns the tiebreaker), Cleveland would start the postseason in the best-of-three Wild Card round on the road. That’s how big this weekend series is.
Both the Royals and Rockies are, on paper, weaker than the Guardians and White Sox, so whoever slips might lose an important competitive advantage in the playoffs.
Yes, the Guardians are already in, but they still have an awful lot to play for this weekend.
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