The Cleveland Guardians’ season comes down to an afternoon tilt in Chicago. Here are some keys to pushing the series to Thursday:
Manage Emotions and Nerves with a Wildly Hostile, Home Crowd:
There is no doubt that the White Sox fans will be loud and desperate to see their team clinch their first playoff series at home since 1906 and complete an entire redemption of their late-season collapse to lose the AL Central. The literal Pope, ghosts of 2005, and probably even whoever is chosen to throw the first pitch
will be present to haunt the current Guardians. This young team will have to shut all that out and focus on playing the best baseball game they can play. They can’t get caught up in thinking about being eliminated and the second-straight October humilation that would entail. They just need to play crisp, fundamental baseball, putting up professional at-bats as hitters and pitchers.
Score Early, Tack on Late:
Shadows will creep into play by about 5 or 5:30PM ET, so the Guardians need to find a way to score. They can’t afford to be shutout by opener Sean Newcomb and whoever comes after him and let it get to the 4th inning not having scored because the 4th-7th innings should be pretty difficult for hitters. By the 8th and 9th, the Guardians will probably see Grant Taylor and/or Hagen Smith AGAIN. They can’t afford to not get to one of these pitchers. They need to take advantage to tack on at least one more run when the shadows are gone and these familiar arms re-emerge.
Hit At Least One Home Run:
It’s very, very hard to win a postseason game without hitting at least one home run. (The White Sox just did it, though, haha. Haha.). So, who is going to hit the Guardians’ first postseason homer? Jo Adell, who should have had one Monday night? Chase DeLauter, Hit a Homer, Take Me Home (for Game 5), Country Roads? Jose Ramirez Back from the Dead? Playoff Rocchio? Patty Barrels? We need a hero, folks.
Have a Quick Hook with Pitchers:
I am very excited to have Daniel Espino start the game, but this needs to be an “all-hands on deck” game for Cleveland. Literally, every pitcher, including Gavin Williams, should be available as needed. I am sure the team has an ideal plan for who will pitch where, but Stephen Vogt needs to be quick to make moves based on swing data, handedness, and the game situation and not hesitate to use arms he hasn’t used yet. Throw the kitchen sink at the White Sox and snuff out rallies without worrying about tomorrow because tomorrow may never come.
Maintain an Overall, Good Approach from Game Two:
Aside from Angel Martinez, I think the Guardians executed a good approach, overall, in game two. They were disciplined to make pitchers work but also aggressive on pitches in the heart of the plate. They can’t afford to have, as I just mentioned, Martinez flailing at uncompetitive pitches. They also can’t afford to have Travis Bazzana, who put up some great at-bats as a whole, take a pitch down the heart of the plate for strike three after working the count full. Do not go up there with a 3-2, 3-1 or 3-0 count looking to take a walk. Look for a pitch you can do damage on and take advantage of it in those situations. The mix of discipline and aggression in game two was right… just gotta get some of those well-hit balls to find grass or the seats, and consistently force White Sox pitchers to get the ball in the zone.
I love this Guardians’ team. I hope today isn’t the last game I get to watch them this year, and I am confident they will do their best to avoid a sweep to a division rival. Let’s go, Guardians!
