CLEVELAND, OH - AUGUST 05: Jose Ramirez #11 of the Cleveland Guardians and Tim Anderson #7 of the Chicago White Sox start to fight as umpire Malachi Moore #44 gets between them during the sixth inning at Progressive Field on August 05, 2023 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Ron Schwane/Getty Images)
2024 was a successful season for the Cleveland Guardians, as they finished in first place in the AL Central with a record of 92-69 and ultimately lost to the World Series runner-up New York Yankees in the ALCS in five games.
After a strong 2024 season, Cleveland made some head-scratching decisions in the offseason, highlighted by trading one-time All-Star, Josh Naylor, to the Arizona Diamondbacks and former Gold Glove outfielder, Myles Straw, to the Toronto Blue Jays. Cleveland also traded Nick Sandlin and Andres Gimenez to Toronto.
Even though Cleveland traded away some valuable assets, they re-signed former Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber and signed Carlos Santana, Jakob Junis, Paul Sewald and John Means. Unfortunately for Cleveland, Means is currently recovering from Tommy John surgery and will not pitch during the 2025 season.
Cleveland now has a record above .500, but they have a run differential of -24 and are currently in second place in the AL Central. They’re nine and a half games behind the first-place Detroit Tigers, mainly due to inconsistencies in its hitting and pitching.
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Cleveland’s offense is led by Jose Ramirez and Steven Kwan, who are both in the top 15 in batting average this season. Outside of its top two batters, Cleveland has been inconsistent at the plate during the 2025 season.
The Guardians have the eighth-worst batting average, rank in the bottom 10 in slugging percentage, runs scored, and on-base percentage. They’re also in the bottom five in hits.
Pitching has also been shaky for Cleveland this season. They rank in the bottom 10 in walks and hits per inning pitched, and they’re just outside of the bottom 10 in batting average against. Cleveland also ranks in the middle of the pack for ERA, strikeouts, hits allowed and runs allowed.
Cleveland has multiple players on the injured list, highlighted by starting pitchers Bieber, Means and Ben Lively. Lively will miss the remainder of the season as he underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery and right flexor tendon repair.
Even with injuries to key pitchers and the inconsistencies on the mound and at the plate, Cleveland will likely contend for a Wild Card spot as October approaches. The Guardians are hoping that Bieber can return to the mound in August to help strengthen their pitching rotation as they wish to make another run in the Postseason.
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Cleveland is currently in a good position to make the postseason at +200 odds, but their chances of making noise are low according to the odds. The Guardians’ odds of making the World Series are +2700, and its odds of winning the World Series are +7500.
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