Even with new-look roster post-trade deadline, the Guardians are still reeling
CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Guardians gave their roster a facelift this week, yet the results looked no different.
They lost five of six at home to the Arizona Diamondbacks and the New York Mets’ skeleton crew. They’ve lost 11 of 14. Even in the rundown American League, they’re in a precarious position.
“We haven’t played a complete game in a little while,” manager Stephen Vogt said after the Mets, fresh off a trade deadline fire sale, swept his club. “It’s going to turn, and we’re going to make it turn.”
Let’s examine some numbers that stand out with Vogt’s team.
Who won and lost the MLB trade deadline?
Andy McCullough and Johnny Sweet
.458: combined OPS for José Ramírez and Angel Martínez since returning from the IL
Ramírez is 9-for-44 with nine singles and six walks. He’s dealing with some lingering wrist soreness, which is why he missed the first two games of the series. Hamate bone excisions are known to sap a player’s power even after returning to action. Martínez is 5-for-33 since healing from a foot fracture.
Combined, the two have posted a .182/.250/.208 slash line in 84 plate appearances. It’s why the team couldn’t simply rely on their returns from the injured list as the elixir to a scuffling lineup. They weren’t producing at a high enough rate to be deemed potential saviors anyway.
That said, the Guardians desperately need Ramírez at full strength, or anything close to it. Injuries notwithstanding, it’s jarring to see Ramírez’s name beside a .233/.331/.388 slash line this late into a season.
.683: Mets’ OPS entering the series
Here’s how the teams ranked Tuesday morning:
Mets: .683 OPS, 28th in the league
Guardians: .681 OPS, 30th in the league
And here’s where they stand now.
Mets: .692 OPS, 27th in the league
Guardians: .680 OPS, 29th in the league
Thank goodness for the Toronto Blue Jays, who dropped to last place on the OPS leaderboard.
On paper, this looked like a clash of inept offenses. Instead, the Mets totaled 25 runs on 35 hits in three games.
9-to-1: the home run disparity in the series
The Mets smacked nine homers in the series, and while it’s understandable to serve one up to Francisco Lindor or Bo Bichette, or even two to Carson Benge, Cleveland’s pitchers surrendered two to New York catcher Luis Torrens, half of his total for the entire season. Brett Baty (.330 slugging percentage) and Jorge Polanco (.243) went deep, too.
Meanwhile, Nathaniel Lowe was the only Guardians hitter to muscle a pitch over the fence, as he socked a three-run shot to right field Thursday.
43: at-bats with runners in scoring position against the Mets
That’s a healthy number for a three-game set. As Lowe stressed, it’s an encouraging sign. They’re getting opportunities. It’s just … they haven’t cashed in on them, and that’s been an issue all season.
The Guardians were 6-for-32 with runners in scoring position in the first two games. It certainly cost them — about 17 things did — in their 10-inning loss to the Mets on Wednesday.
They rebounded to tally five hits in 11 at-bats with runners in scoring position Thursday, if you’re scavenging for signs of life.
Minus-4: Guardians’ OPS+ with a runner on third and two outs
No situation has stymied the Guardians more than when a hitter approaches the plate with a runner on third and two outs. They’re 5-for-46 in those situations.
Guardians with a runner on third, two outs: .109/.226/.130 slash line
MLB average with a runner on third, two outs: .246/.357/.394 slash line
Cleveland’s production in those scenarios equates to a minus-4 OPS+, meaning it is 104 percent worse than the league average.
That’s an extreme example of the Guardians’ collective lack of timely hitting. Here’s how they’ve fared in other situations (remember, an OPS+ of 100 is league average):
Runners in scoring position: 82 OPS+
Runners on base: 85 OPS+
Bases empty: 94 OPS+
Bases loaded: 89 OPS+
Runner on third and fewer than two outs: 89 OPS+
.931: Lowe’s career OPS at Progressive Field
Nathaniel Lowe was the only Guardians hitter to send a pitch over the fence against the Mets. (Ken Blaze / Imagn Images via Reuters)
He has fared well in 18 games at what is now his home ballpark, boosted by his performance Thursday afternoon, when he notched a walk, a single and a homer. He owns a .951 OPS against Cleveland in 37 career games. Thankfully, for the Guardians’ purposes, the havoc he wreaks at 2401 Ontario Street will now be for their benefit.
“I can’t put my finger on it,” Lowe said, “but hopefully the magic continues.”
7: pitches required for Austin Hedges to record four outs Thursday
Meanwhile, in his second appearance in his new relief role, Slade Cecconi threw 30 pitches and didn’t record an out. Baseball is weird.
About 20 years ago, Hedges was travel-ball teammates in Orange County with future MLB pitchers Joe Musgrove, Zach Davies and Michael Lorenzen, but he insists he was, at the time, as skilled on the mound as any of them. It’s why he gladly takes the ball from Vogt whenever the Guardians need to save their bullpen in a blowout.
His fastballs, err, changeups, err, whatever it was that had Statcast flummoxed, averaged 70.9 mph (with 100 percent effectiveness).
3: Guardians games against the Chicago White Sox this weekend
This feels like a critical series, to state the obvious.
The Guardians sit two games under .500 for the first time since the morning of Aug. 26, 2025. From there, they finished the regular season with 24 wins in 32 games. They might not need such a frantic finish to capture a third consecutive AL Central crown, but they can make life much easier on themselves if they handle the White Sox this weekend at Rate Field.
The teams have played seven times this season, and six games have been decided by one run. The other was decided by two.
“Obviously, we wish we were in a different position, record-wise, going into the weekend,” Vogt said, “but we get three days with the people we’re chasing.”