The American League has had an “anticlimactic” ending as we see the first-seeded Yankees face the Guardians. Both teams are credited with having fantastic regular seasons and look to keep that momentum up into the race for the AL title. The Guardians are a balanced and situational hitting team with a stacked bullpen and a reliable rotation. The Yankees will use big names and a reliable closer to try and defend the label as the best team in the American League.
Cleveland Guardians
The second-seeded Cleveland Guardians continued their clutch-hitting approach, backed up by their skills in getting on base. The main contributors to the Guardian’s hitting success come from the top of the lineup from their star Jose Ramirez and trade acquisition Lane Johnson.
Ramirez, Johnson and David Fry provide Cleveland with their power, hitting a combined four home runs through their five games. These were not ordinary home runs either; the round trips came in clutch positions to tie or win the game or with runners in scoring position. Lane Thomas started things off with a grand slam in the first inning of the series to set up a 7-0 win on their home field. Then, after waiting two games with no fireworks from the Cleveland offense, Jose Ramirez and David Fry hit go-ahead home runs to take a 5-4 lead and force a game five in the series. David Fry came on with a pinch-hit opportunity and ended up being the winner.
The Guardians will continue to lean on these bats while also hoping the contact-focused hitters continue to produce. Steven Kwan and Bryan Rocchio shine in this area, with Kwan’s batting average in the 500s and Rocchio’s ranking in the high 300s. These reliable bats will also always have an opportunity to damage the Yankees.
Cleveland has put up a combined 2.66 ERA through their five-game series, with a few arms shining above the rest. Canadian Cade Smith leads the team in strikeouts, fanning 12 of the 21 batters he’s seen while allowing one run in that period. Starters Matthew Boyd and Tanner Bibee lead the charge, with Boyd yet to surrender a run in the six and two-thirds innings he has played and Bibee allowing 2.08 earned runs against through eight and two-thirds inning, respectively.
Behind Cade Smith lies Hunter Gaddis, Tim Herrin and Emmanual Clase. While Gaddis and Herrin have been keeping up sub-three earned run averages, Clase blew a save and allowed three of his four runs against in the same game. However, Clase ended the series strong with two saves in his three other appearances.
If the bullpen and rotation can keep the Yankees at bay while the lineup continues to produce. Jose Ramirez and the Guardians could find themselves in their first World Series in eight years. However, keeping the Yankee’s bats quiet is easier said than done.
New York Yankees
The story in New York is the surprising balance of quality hitting, mixed with strong pitching outside of Carlos Rodon. The Yanks have a strong 2.50 earned run average through their four games this postseason. Considering the smaller sample size, the Yankees have yet to be tested in a more extended series or have their back against the wall. For the most part, the Royals were only a struggle if you include trying to break Maikel Garcia and Jazz Chisholm as a struggle.
The Yankees have found success spreading around the quality of hits, with Giancarlo Stanton being the best at doing so. Stanton has posted a .375 batting average with 11 total bases in the four games he has played. Gleaner Torres has also shined throughout the Yankees’ short postseason so far, with four runs and three runs batted in himself.
The big story with the Yankees bats can be found within the struggles of Aaron Judge. The probable AL’s most valuable player has a measly .145 batting average through the team’s first series. However, this is nothing new for the Bronx Bomber, as he has only managed a .207 average throughout his playoff career. New York will hope their hero wakes up in a series where they will need him against a strong opponent who does not struggle to put up runs.
The mound has been friendly to all those in the white and black outside of recent pickup Carlos Rodon. In Rodon’s first start for the ball club in the postseason, he allowed four earned runs in 3.2 innings. However, the rest of the pitching staff has had nothing but success, with the biggest stars shining in Gerrit Cole and … Luke Weaver? The star closer Weaver has put up three saves in the three Yankee wins this postseason. He has been a surprise star and looks to continue his dominance against the Guardians.
Overall, the Yankees seemed to have enough star power to outshine the Guardians. But will those stars shine or continue to dwindle and become non-factors like Aaron Judge has been throughout this postseason?
My Prediction- Guardians in 6
With Aaron Judge continuing his postseason struggles and Cleveland continuing their regular season dominance with runners in scoring position, the Guardians will be able to pull out a win in this series. The Guardians always find a way to capitalize on their opportunities, and I do not see that changing heading into this ALCS matchup. However, if Juan Soto and Aaron Judge can get going, it will be a completely different series, and the Yankees will probably dominate in the score column. You can never count out a player like Aaron Judge.
As we head get closer and closer to the World Series, you need to keep it locked on Area 51 for everything MLB Postseason.
