CLEVELAND, Ohio — A week and some change and it could all be over.
Thirteen games, that’s all that’s left on the Guardians’ regular season schedule. They’re 6 1/2 games out of first place in the AL Central and 2 1/2 out of the third wild card spot.
If they’re going to extend their season beyond Sept. 28, they’re going to need some help from someone outside their clubhouse.
The good thing is they’re taking care of their part of the equation. They’re 10-4 in September and coming off a 5-1 homestand against Kansas City and the White Sox.
In late August, manager Stephen Vogt expressed concern about his team playing 17 games in 17 days. The concern was so high that when the rosters expanded to 28 players on Sept. 1, the Guardians went with a six-man rotation.
It proved to be a good move.
The Guardians went 12-5 in the 17-game stretch and the six-man rotation, once Joey Cantillo was added on Sept. 3, has gone 7-1 with a 1.61 ERA (14 earned runs in 78 1/3 innings).
The rotation of Cantillo, Logan Allen, Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, Parker Messick and Slade Cecconi rolled out gritty and impressive starts as if on command. On Sept. 8, Cecconi took a no-hitter against Kansas City into the eighth inning before losing it. On Sept. 9, Cantillo threw eight scoreless innings against the Royals. On Friday against the White Sox, Bibee threw his first complete game shutout.
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Joked Cecconi, “I went seven no-hit innings and threw the third best game of the week. How often does that happen?”
The Guardians finally had an off day Monday and they earned it. But what awaits them will define this late-season rally as something to remember or just another heater by Team Streak.
They open a three-game series Tuesday night against the AL Central-leading Tigers at Comerica Park. In the next 10 days, they will play the Tigers six times.
While the Tigers will be playing with a decided edge — their magic number to clinch the Central and eliminate the Guardians in the division is seven — the Guardians have to play for the sweep. It’s certainly not an easy thing to do against one of the best teams in baseball, but there’s no other choice.
“I play this game for the playoffs,” said Guardians’ catcher Austin Hedges. “I play this game to chase a ring. I think I could speak for everybody in this clubhouse, that’s what we want. That’s really our ultimate goal.
“I’ve been on teams that haven’t been in the mix in September and it is no fun. To be in it and to be pushing to go for it together, with a group that you really care about, is why we play this game. I’m really proud of our guys for what we’re doing right now.”
The Guardians have been chasing that ring since 1948. They have come close, oh, so close, to grabbing it. But it’s unlikely they’ve ever chased it with team with the lowest batting average in the big leagues and a run differential of -31.
But as Vogt likes to say, “We don’t go away.”
After going into the All-Star break at 46-49 and averaging 3.7 runs per game, the Guardians are 32-22 and averageing 4.2 runs per game since the break.
In Sunday’s 3-2 win over the White Sox, they had five regulars or semi-regulars in the lineup who were hitting .223 or lower. One of them was catcher Bo Naylor, who drove in all three runs in the victory.
“The vibes are high,” said Naylor after the game. “It’s been a long stretch of games, so the boys are definitely feeling it. We’ve got Monday to recover and reflect on how we grinded through these last few weeks.
“It’s been awesome, but in our minds, the job obviously is not finished.”
If the AL Central proves to be beyond the Guardians reach, the wild card picture doesn’t look as daunting. The sticking point is that with only 13 games left, they have to keep winning no matter who they’re playing.
The Guardians, following Sunday’s win, were 2 1/2 games behind Houston for the third and final wild-card spot. Texas was in front of them, trailing the Astros by two games. While the Guardians were off Monday, the Rangers opened a three-game series against the Astros in Houston.
After this three-game series against Detroit, the Guardians will play four games against the Twins over the weekend at Target Field before returning to Progressive Field for the final six games of the season — three against the Tigers and three against Texas.
No one said it was going to be easy. Thankfully, no one said it was going to be dull either.