The Cleveland Guardians split Tuesday’s doubleheader with the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ballpark. They won Game 1 6-5 after coming from behind, but dropped the nightcap 2-0 after being limited to three hits.
Cleveland has been shut out in three of their last four games, which doesn’t bode well for the future as they try to take the top spot of the AL Central away from the Chicago White Sox.
If you can’t score runs, you won’t win many ballgames. It’s as simple as that.
Manager Stephen Vogt said that hitters got on base, but they failed to bring home the baserunners, suggesting that the issues stem from a situational hitting problem.
“We did a nice job getting on base and then it was just another night where we didn’t get that big hit,” Vogt said. “We’re getting opportunities with runners in scoring position. We’re just not cashing in. We’re going to keep working. Our pitchers are working extremely hard, and Gavin has given us a chance to win. We need to work to get better.”
Yes, Gavin Williams allowed just two runs in seven innings, striking out 12. It’s not fair that he couldn’t go home with a win. Instead, he was saddled with the loss.
The Guardians collected just three hits and four walks in the night game. Vogt’s remarks about them doing a nice job getting on base might have been a little exaggerated, or at least misleading.
Then, what he said about the Guardians not being able to get the big hit was spot-on: the team went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. The Reds didn’t need much to get the best of Williams: a solo home run and a wild pitch were enough to get them the two runs they needed to take the victory home.
Cleveland hasn’t been doing a good job of hitting with runners in scoring position lately, yes, but the offensive problems are much deeper than that. They often don’t get on base enough to mount a rally, they lack power, and they are frustratingly streaky.
Time will tell if they at least try to solve these issues at the deadline. We will find out next week.
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