logo
Guardians weekend sweep takeaways: Emmanuel Clase, Steven Kwan and Triston McKenzie

Guardians weekend sweep takeaways: Emmanuel Clase, Steven Kwan and Triston McKenzie

New York Times21-04-2025

PITTSBURGH — A fresh batch of thoughts on the 12-9 Guardians as they return to Progressive Field for a nine-game homestand against the Yankees, Red Sox and Twins…
Hitters have swung at 31 of Joey Cantillo's changeups this season, missing on 17 of those swings for an absurd whiff rate of 54.8%.
Advertisement
Kyle Manzardo was the first Cleveland hitter since PNC Park opened in 2001 to deposit a home run into the Allegheny River. Overall, 51 hitters have combined to whack 82 homers into the river. Manzardo already has more home runs this season (six) than he did last year in about twice the plate appearances.
Kyle ambushing the first pitch really robbed us of Hammy calling a river run.
On a different note … dude.#GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/55oxpjxt3w
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) April 19, 2025
The Guardians are 3-2 in Ben Lively's five starts, even though he has opposed the following starters: Cole Ragans, Dylan Cease, Shane Smith, Ragans again and Paul Skenes. Cleveland has won three consecutive Logan Allen starts, as the southpaw has allowed only one earned run across 16 innings in that span.
Gabriel Arias has four multi-hit games in his last eight starts. Entering this season, he had 23 multi-hit games in 145 career starts.
Austin Hedges is averaging 4.46 pitches per plate appearance, which would rank third in the American League if he had enough trips to the plate to qualify.
The Guardians have played in only six games decided by one or two runs (28.6% of their games). Last year, 49.1% of their games were decided by one or two runs.
… in a few months? You can see the formula that can make him effective. He throws a 96 mph fastball, a 95 mph sinker and a 91 mph cutter that all move differently. He can drop in a changeup to complement the sinker, or a slider to complement the cutter. The key is command. But when he's hitting his spots, those pitches all play off each other in harmony. By the summer months, will he have demonstrated some consistency?
Ortiz's strikeout rate in 2024: 19.2%
Ortiz's strikeout rate in 2025: 24.7%
Ortiz's strikeout rate his last two starts: 42.9%
Advertisement
'He's got a bunch of pitches going in a bunch of different directions,' said catcher Bo Naylor. 'When you're in the zone with multiple pitches, it doesn't allow the hitter to be able to eliminate as much as they would like to.'
… for Triston McKenzie. If he had a minor-league option, this would be simple. Instead, he's either stuck in Cleveland's bullpen or banished to the waiver wire.
Let's examine some data. Keep in mind, he has only logged 5 2/3 innings, so while it's evident to anyone watching that he's struggling, surface-level numbers aren't necessarily reliable.
To complicate matters, since the Guardians can't trust him in a non-lopsided game, there's no way for him to get consistent work to try to escape this funk. At some point, if this continues, he'll run out of time. Andrew Walters is ready whenever the Guardians need a fresh arm. Erik Sabrowski, Nic Enright and Franco Aleman, who are all on the mend, could be options at some point in May or June, too.
… Steven Kwan's. He's on pace for more than 30 home runs. He's hitting .325 with an .879 OPS, with a career-best .494 slugging percentage. Can he sustain this through September? Each season, he finds new ways to torment pitchers. This year, it feels like he has something close to the finished product at the plate. He's a threat to yank a fastball into the right-field seats. He rarely offers at anything outside of the zone. He can find a gap in the outfield grass as well as any hitter in the sport.
Stevie, baby.#GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/ATp5q1qoTs
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) April 16, 2025
That's probably why Gavin Williams shrugged when asked earlier this season how he would approach an at-bat against Kwan. 'Flip one up there,' Williams said. 'Hopefully he hits it on the ground. I don't really know.'
The two squared off while rehabbing last season, and Williams said Kwan even pestered him in that low-key setting.
Advertisement
'He's a pretty elite hitter,' Williams said. 'I want to get people out in four pitches or less. Kwan fouls a lot of pitches off because he knows the strike zone very well, and he can get to about anything if he wants to.'
… his defensive skill set was on full display last week. On Thursday, with Ramón Urías on first base, Gunnar Henderson hit an opposite-field double to left field. As Kwan chased after the fly ball, he slowed his pace for a second and raised his glove to fool Urías. Without that deke, Urías would have run full speed and scored. Instead, in the ensuing at-bat, Urías was picked off third.
On Friday, he corralled an Enmanuel Valdez double off the left-field wall and, without hesitation, twisted his body and launched a one-hopper to third base to nab Bryan Reynolds and take the bite out of a Pirates ninth-inning threat.
The most satisfied person in the dugout? Outfield coach J.T. Maguire, who has worked with Kwan since his nascent days in Cleveland's organization in 2018. Maguire, a soft-spoken guy, said he was internally shouting with pride after the ninth-inning throw. Kwan's ability to understand how the baseball will carom off the wall, to know how to position his body to uncork the proper throw and to know, while his back is turned toward the action, where to throw the ball, explains why he's never not won a Gold Glove Award. The best word to describe it, Maguire said, is 'savvy.'
… who is still chugging along in the big leagues 17 years later. Carlos Santana appeared in his 2,100th game Saturday, the second-most among active players, behind only Pittsburgh's Andrew McCutchen. OK, so the trade was actually Blake to the Dodgers for Santana and pitcher Jon Meloan, who totaled 17 2/3 innings in the majors from 2007-09. Two of those innings came with Cleveland. Santana, meanwhile, ranks sixth on the franchise's all-time home runs list and trails only Jim Thome on the walks leaderboard. Santana ranks 49th in major-league history in walks, and could stroll his way into the top 40 this summer. He could chase down Willie McCovey, Alex Rodriguez, Todd Helton, Eddie Murray, Manny Ramirez, Tim Raines and David Ortiz by the end of the season. Two-thirds of the names ahead of him on the all-time list are Hall of Famers, and many who aren't — Barry Bonds, Pete Rose, Rafael Palmeiro, Rodriguez, Ramirez — have deserving numbers, but, well, uh, extenuating circumstances.
… and you'll notice that, before his nightmarish ninth inning on Sunday, he had all but abandoned his slider. In his first three appearances last week, he threw 27 cutters and two sliders. The results: three save chances, three save conversions. On Sunday, in a 30-pitch root canal against the Pirates, he threw 19 cutters and 11 sliders. He continues searching for the formula that, before October, made him the league's most reliable reliever. His numbers this season are jarring.
Clase in 2024: 74 1/3 innings, 39 hits, five earned runs, .154 opponent average, .392 opponent OPS
Clase in 2025: 10 1/3 innings, 20 hits, nine earned runs, .426 opponent average, 1.070 opponent OPS
(Photo of Kyle Manzardo and José Ramírez: Justin Berl / Getty Images)

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Red Sox rookies Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer will likely take a seat against tough Yankees southpaws this weekend
Red Sox rookies Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer will likely take a seat against tough Yankees southpaws this weekend

Boston Globe

time13 minutes ago

  • Boston Globe

Red Sox rookies Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer will likely take a seat against tough Yankees southpaws this weekend

Yet with the Yankees likely to roll out three consecutive lefthanded starters (Ryan Yarbrough, Carlos Rodón, and Max Fried) for their weekend series at Fenway against the Red Sox, both rookies are likely to sit in deference to righthanded hitters Rob Refsnyder and Romy González for some — perhaps even all — of the games. Advertisement 'We have some good righties here. If we don't play Romy, we don't play Ref against the lefty, is that good for the team?' wondered manager Alex Cora. 'People get frustrated [about sitting the rookies against lefties]. I get frustrated, too, because I get the same question over and over again, but I've been doing it since 2019 like this.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Indeed, Cora has typically used platoons to protect lefthanded hitters such as Rafael Devers, Jarren Duran, and Triston Casas as they acclimated to the big leagues. But why not look at the performance of Mayer and Anthony in the minors and conclude that they're ready to handle both lefties and righties? 'I can drive a car,' analogized assistant hitting coach Dillon Lawson. 'That doesn't mean I can be an Indy racecar driver.' Advertisement The caliber of stuff featured by lefties in Triple A is drastically different than that of big league lefties. Across Triple A, the average left-on-left fastball (combined four-seamer and sinker) entering Wednesday was 91.7 miles per hour, with just 7.5 percent of them exceeding 95. In the big leagues, the average left-on-left fastball this year has hummed across the plate at 93 m.p.h., with 24 percent of the offerings coming in at 95 or hotter. 'Especially if you're a lefty that's 95 or better and can command it enough to execute game plans, every major league team wants that on their staff,' said Lawson. 'So you're not seeing that in Triple A.' Anthony's first big league at-bat against a lefty illuminated the point. In the sixth inning of Monday's game, Rays manager Kevin Cash summoned southpaw Garrett Cleavinger specifically for Anthony. Cleavinger threw Anthony two fastballs: One at 96.4 m.p.h. (first-pitch called strike), one at 96.8 (0-1 chase for a swing and miss). Anthony had seen only one left-on-left pitch in his entire Triple A season that was thrown that hard, a 96.9-m.p.h. fastball from Anthony Gose on April 24. Cleavinger finished the at-bat by freezing Anthony with a sweeper — a middle-middle pitch that was hittable based on location but that Anthony didn't have in his mental database. He took a called third strike. The pitch had 20 inches of horizontal break toward the rookie. In Triple A this year, Anthony saw only four left-on-left sweepers with more than 18 inches of glove-side movement; he swung at none of them (three were balls, one was a called strike). For that matter, Anthony had seen just 15 left-on-left sweepers with at least 15 inches of horizontal break. He swung at three, resulting in one well-struck single, one double-play grounder, and one swing and miss. Advertisement That single at-bat highlighted why it's difficult to look at Triple A left-on-left numbers and assume they'll translate to the big leagues. There's an adjustment that players must experience. 'That's why they're here. That's why they're not in the minor leagues,' said Anthony. 'You come to learn from it and realize, 'OK, this isn't the same guy you're facing in Double A or Triple A three times a week,' so now we've got to adjust.' The Sox want to give Anthony and Mayer opportunities to learn by facing elite lefties. But right now, the growth opportunities are secondary to trying to win games. And with both Gonzalez (.353/.421/.529 against lefties entering Wednesday) and Refsnyder (.279/.400/.558) demolishing lefties, the Sox won't shy from employing righthanded hitters who give them the best chance of success against lefties in critical situations. Cora has discussed the topic with Anthony and Mayer when turning to the two righthanded veterans as pinch hitters. The rookies, in turn, said the conversation is unnecessary. 'Ref's our guy. Ref's the guy against lefties. [Hitting against lefties] is Ref's bread and butter. So as soon as [Cora] told me [Refsnyder would pinch hit for Anthony against a lefty on Monday], I was excited to cheer him on,' said Anthony. '[Cora] didn't really have to explain much to me. I know that that's the goal, to get Ref up and try to help the team win. Ref obviously has more experience than I do, especially with big league pitching in general, but [especially] with big league lefties.' Advertisement 'Romy's a hell of a player, so whenever a tough lefty comes in and [Cora] switches me for Romy, I'm really confident that he's going to get the job done,' said Mayer (1 for 7 with three strikeouts against lefties). 'I trust every single person in this lineup, on this team, to help the team win.' Eventually, if Anthony and Mayer are what the Red Sox expect them to be, their opportunities against lefties will come — just as they eventually did for Devers, Duran, and Casas. There will be learning moments in the big leagues that will allow them to adjust to the level of competition — something they'd shown the ability to do in the minors. 'Every level, there's growing pains and learning experiences,' said Mayer. 'And I think just getting at-bats and learning every single day, you get better and you figure it out.' Alex Speier can be reached at

Yankees at Royals Prediction: Odds, expert picks, starting pitchers, betting trends and stats for June 12
Yankees at Royals Prediction: Odds, expert picks, starting pitchers, betting trends and stats for June 12

NBC Sports

time3 hours ago

  • NBC Sports

Yankees at Royals Prediction: Odds, expert picks, starting pitchers, betting trends and stats for June 12

It's Thursday, June 12 and the Yankees (41-25) are in Kansas City to take on the Royals (34-34). Will Warren is slated to take the mound for New York against Seth Lugo for Kansas City. New York goes for the sweep today after winning the first two of the series against Kansas City, 10-2 and 6-3. The Yankees high powered offense has been led by Aaron Judge who homered in both games of the series. The Yankees have won five of the last six with Warren on the mound compared to the Royals who have dropped the past three with Lugo. Let's dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two. We've got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts. Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long. Game details & how to watch Yankees at Royals Date: Thursday, June 12, 2025 Time: 7:40PM EST Site: Kauffman Stadium City: Kansas City, MO Network/Streaming: YES, FDSNKC, MLBN Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out. Odds for the Yankees at the Royals The latest odds as of Thursday: Moneyline: Yankees (-147), Royals (+123) Spread: Yankees -1.5 Total: 9.0 runs Probable starting pitchers for Yankees at Royals Pitching matchup for June 12, 2025: Will Warren vs. Seth Lugo Yankees: Will Warren, (4-3, 5.34 ERA) Last outing: 5.1 Innings Pitched, 4 Earned Runs Allowed, 3 Hits Allowed, 4 Walks, and 6 StrikeoutsRoyals: Seth Lugo, (3-5, 3.46 ERA) Last outing: 5.0 Innings Pitched, 2 Earned Runs Allowed, 5 Hits Allowed, 2 Walks, and 5 Strikeouts Yankees: Will Warren, (4-3, 5.34 ERA) Last outing: 5.1 Innings Pitched, 4 Earned Runs Allowed, 3 Hits Allowed, 4 Walks, and 6 Strikeouts Royals: Seth Lugo, (3-5, 3.46 ERA) Last outing: 5.0 Innings Pitched, 2 Earned Runs Allowed, 5 Hits Allowed, 2 Walks, and 5 Strikeouts Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type! Expert picks & predictions for tonight's game between the Yankees and the Royals 'Aaron Judge is currently hitting .394 and no Yankee has ever hit .400 let alone the last MLB player being Ted Williams in 1941. Judge is ripping this season and hitting .364 this month with nine hits through nine games. Judge hit .364 in May too, so he will need to step it up a little but a date with the Red Sox, Angels, Orioles, Reds, and Athletics over the next five series — I see a lot of hits coming for Judge, so I played the +1300 for .400 by the All-Star break and sprinkled +5500 for the season.' Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700. Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts. Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager. Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Thursday's game between the Yankees and the Royals: Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the New York Yankees on the Moneyline. Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Kansas City Royals at +1.5. Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 9.0. Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page from NBC. Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Yankees at Royals The Yankees have won 4 of their last 5 matchups against AL Central teams 7 of the Royals' last 8 games (88%) have gone over the Total The Yankees have covered the Run Line in 5 of their last 6 matchups against the Royals If you're looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports! Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff: Jay Croucher (@croucherJD) Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store