CLEVELAND — The Guardians offense isn’t striking much fear into opposing pitching staffs. And they know they’re going to have to earn whatever hittable pitches they do see.
Through their first 35 games, the Guardians have featured arguably baseball’s worst offense. They have remained close to .500 — 16-19 after Monday’s 6-2 loss to the Detroit Tigers — thanks to a pitching staff that has largely begun to find its stride.
Entering Monday, the Guardians ranked last among MLB’s 30 clubs in wRC+ (75, meaning they’re 25% below league average), slugging percentage (.330) and home runs (18, the only team below 22). And they’re 29th in average (.224) and runs scored (124).
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One of the main culprits is the Guardians have struggled to control the strike zone. Their 34.8% o-swing percentage (meaning how often they swing at pitches outside the strike zone) is the second-worst rate in the game, ahead of only the reeling Chicago White Sox.
In large part, the Guardians haven’t been pleased with their plan at the plate, and the offense has been sputtering without a spark.
“Yeah, I mean, you’ve got to earn good pitches, and it’s way easier said than done,” said manager Terry Francona. “But when you try to hit all speeds and different pitches, different locations, it gets harder to be consistent. You might hit some sometimes but, man, at times we seem like we’re a pitch late as opposed to a pitch early.
“We have a plan and then they execute a pitch and we kind of veer off of that. We’re going to have to be disciplined.”
Guardians offensive issues in 2023 involve nearly the entire lineup
The early season woes have been up and down the lineup. Amed Rosario hasn’t yet gotten going, though that follows the historical trend of his career, particularly the last two years when he’s been among the league’s leaders in hits in the second half. Josh Bell and Josh Naylor have enjoyed some better stretches, but both started cold to begin the season. Myles Straw is working in the opposite direction, in which a torrid opening few weeks has thawed to an icier May.
Then there’s Oscar Gonzalez, who was optioned to Triple-A primarily due to his issues controlling the strike zone, as the Guardians are hoping he can “reset” in Columbus while Gabriel Arias and Will Brennan see more at-bats in right field in Cleveland.
The power has been a particular problem. The Guardians recently went a week without a home run. It’s as if the lineup as a whole, while trying to make some noise, gave out noise-cancelling headphones.
“We’ve had a tough stretch, and it seems like it’s just been the bats,” Bell said after Sunday’s win over the Minnesota Twins. “When you’re playing the game the right way, when your pitchers are doing as well as they are and you can look around the clubhouse and say, ‘You know what? When we start hitting, we’re going be on a tear,’ it’s a good feeling even when you’re losing games.”
After Monday’s loss, the Guardians have scored two or fewer runs in five of their last eight games. And in 35 games this season, they’ve scored three or fewer runs in 22 of them.
While the offense has been a major issue, the Guardians can also say that it almost can’t get worse at the moment, and they’ve still managed to remain afloat, hovering just under .500. But it won’t help the offense to be any less frustrated with lackluster performances night after night until it’s corrected. It’s been the same old song for roughly a month.
“We’ve just got to keep it going,” Francona said. “It can be frustrating, but the choices are dig in and see if you can do better or get frustrated.”
Francona noted after Monday’s loss that, of course, a bit of that frustration has started to sink in. But then again, it’d be more alarming if that element wasn’t there while a team that won 92 games a year ago is sporting statistically the league’s worse offense through the first month of the season.
“Well, I mean, I don’t think they’re supposed to be having a party when we’re not scoring,” Francona said. “They’re getting after it. They show up early, hit extra and keep their enthusiasm during the game, but they get tired of making right turns. I get it.”
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.