Deep trouble: Punchless Guardians being ‘tested’ by inept offense that has team in worrisome slump
FILE - Cleveland Guardians' Josh Bell reacts after striking out, next to Chicago White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal during the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Chicago. One of baseball's best stories last season, the Guardians have fallen on hard times with troubling signs that a recovery might not be forthcoming. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Charles Rex Arbogast]
CLEVELAND (AP) — The magic that made the Cleveland Guardians so special last season has disappeared. Ranked last offensively in virtually every statistical category, the defending AL Central champions are seven games under .500 for the first time since 2015. There are problems up and down Cleveland’ lineup, which doesn’t produce enough runs. The Guardians have already been shut out six times this season and their 30 homers in 49 games is their poorest output in that span since 1991. The silver lining is that they play in a winnable division and there is still time for a turnaround.
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FILE - Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Shane Bieber heads to the clubhouse as first base coach Sandy Alomar Jr. spits a stream of water, after Bieber was pulled in the fifth inning of the team's baseball game against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday, May 16, 2023, in Chicago. One of baseball's best stories last season, the Guardians have fallen on hard times with troubling signs that a recovery might not be forthcoming. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)
Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Charles Rex Arbogast
FILE - Cleveland Guardians' Cam Gallagher, left, pitching coach Carl Willis, center, and starting pitcher Cal Quantrill, right, have a mound meeting during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox in Cleveland, Wednesday, May 24, 2023. One of baseball's best stories last season, the Guardians have fallen on hard times with troubling signs that a recovery might not be forthcoming. (AP Photo/Phil Long, File)
Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Phil Long