Look beyond the East Coast to find the team with the best baseball record.
That is currently the Cleveland Guardians.
On Tuesday night, Cleveland defeated the Baltimore Orioles 10-8 thanks to José RamÃrez’s three-run homer in the fourth inning. The Guardians have now won seven straight games, taking the top spot in the major leagues from the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies, who had been swapping it back and forth since early May.
“We enjoy playing against the best teams because it allows us to measure ourselves,” stated Guardians manager Stephen Vogt. “We don’t look at our records. It’s far too early for that. Our goal is to win every series, and we now have the chance to sweep tomorrow. That’s all you can ask for.
The Guardians will have to work harder for respect in the often-maligned AL Central, but winning the first two games of this series at Camden Yards sends a strong message. Last week, it appeared that Baltimore had made a statement by winning three straight series against the Braves, Phillies, and Yankees. However, the Orioles have lost five games in a row since then, marking their longest slump in almost two years.
In contrast, New York has lost eight of its last eleven. Philadelphia (52-27) lost to Detroit on Tuesday and is currently percentage points behind Cleveland (51-26).
The Guardians triumphed 3-2 on Monday night despite resting closer Emmanuel Clase. On Tuesday, Cleveland relieved starter Logan Allen after three-plus innings and then scored five runs in the fourth to grab an 8-4 lead.
“The versatility this team has — we can hit home runs, we can put up crooked numbers, and we can play close games,” Vogt told ESPN. “We’ll take it one inning at a time.” We want to embody all the cliches; the cliches get the job done.”
The Guardians won Tuesday despite allowing four home runs to a Baltimore squad that has hit 129 home runs in the major league.
“It’s all about this team’s resilience. “I couldn’t be more proud of our guys from top to bottom,” Vogt stated. Logan struggled with his pitching and ended up in the bullpen. I just can’t say enough about how our pitching staff has helped us this year.
