CLEVELAND — On July 4, after the Guardians lost for the eighth time during their 10-game skid, players lingered in the dugout at Progressive Field and stared out at the scene of the Tigers†celebratory handshake line.
The Guardians†season had hit a new low point, but Slade Cecconi declared that they could channel the tough times into something great.
“I’m really looking forward to the end of the season when we look back at this eight-game skid and go, ‘Man, remember, remember how tough that was?â€â€ Cecconi said that night. “‘Remember how we got through it? Remember how we trusted each other? Remember how we showed up the same every day and just kept working?â€
“It’s going to pay off. We’re going to see ourselves in a great spot at the end of the season. I fully believe that.â€
All they did was make baseball history. With the Tigers†4-3 loss to the Red Sox on Sunday, the Guardians clinched the American League Central for a second straight season and 13th in franchise history, bookending perhaps the greatest in-season comeback in baseball history. Then they started the party when Brayan Rocchio hit a walk-off three-run homer in the 10th inning for a 9-8 win over the Rangers.
The Guardians will host a familiar foe in the Tigers at Progressive Field in the best-of-three Wild Card Series that kicks off on Tuesday.
Cleveland was as many as 15 1/2 games behind Detroit for first place in the AL Central, as recently as the morning of July 9. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, that is the largest deficit a team has overcome to finish first in its division (since 1969) or league (pre-1969). The 1914 Braves (15 games back) previously held the record.
The Guardians were as many as 11 games behind Detroit this month, on the morning of Sept. 5. That is the largest September deficit overcome to win a division (since 1969) or league (pre-1969), surpassing the 8 1/2-game deficit erased by the â€64 Cardinals. Cleveland won 17 of 19 from Sept. 5-24.
“To win the division after everything we’ve been through … and we did it with a win, it just solidifies that these guys earned every bit of it,†manager Stephen Vogt said. “It wasn’t given. Nothing that these guys have accomplished all year has been given.
“They’ve gone out and earned every single bit of it, and I couldn’t be more proud of them.â€
The Guardians became just the fourth team to reach the postseason in a season in which they had a 10-game skid. They overcame adversity such as watching closer Emmanuel Clase and starter Luis Ortiz going on non-disciplinary paid leave in July due to MLB investigations. The same month, ace Shane Bieber was dealt at the Trade Deadline.
But those inside the home clubhouse at Progressive Field never gave in and maintained their belief they could do the impossible.
“I don’t think anybody ever lost the vision of where we were trying to go this year, even at our darkest point in the season,†Cecconi said Sunday morning. “It’s really cool to see it come full circle.â€
The Guardians clinched a postseason berth on Saturday and celebrated afterward, but to them, the job was not finished. They wanted to play the Wild Card Series at their park, in front of their fans. They wanted to clinch the division and not do so exclusively due to a Tigers loss.
Of course, players and coaches celebrated in the eighth inning on Sunday, when they learned they were AL Central champs as a lively crowd of 31,054 suddenly began to cheer loudly, reacting to Detroitâ€s loss.
“We wanted to do it for the fans,†catcher Austin Hedges said. “All these fans have been showing up all year. … For them to come out, they deserve to see us truly win the division.â€
Rowdy Tellez’s three-run homer in the top of the 10th threatened that goal, but Rocchio stepped up in the bottom of the inning and crushed a 95.6 mph four-seamer from Jose Corniell off the right-field foul pole.
“It was incredible,†Rocchio said through team interpreter Agustin Rivero. “Not only because of the homer and the walk-off, but knowing that we wanted to win the division the right way. We knew we had it at that point, but winning the game was really important for us.â€
Rocchio being the one to deliver the big swing was a fitting way to put a bow on the regular-season slate. The 24-year-old was a Gold Glove finalist at shortstop last year, had a big postseason and earned Clevelandâ€s Opening Day shortstop job this year. After a rough start offensively to 2025, the Guardians optioned him to Triple-A Columbus on May 12.
They recalled Rocchio on July 1 and moved him to second base, where he has played strong defense alongside shortstop Gabriel Arias. As his numbers before the All-Star break (.530 OPS) and afterward (.689) show, Rocchio has continued to work to get better.
“For him to hit that walk-off, it’s super emblematic of our season in that we never quit,†Vogt said. “Every step, every setback is an opportunity to get better, and Rocchio embodies that better than anybody.â€
Progressive Field popped when that ball left Rocchio’s bat. The ballpark has had a playoff atmosphere all week, as the Guardians have pushed for the postseason. Now that itâ€s here, they canâ€t wait to get in front of their fans and keep this run going.
“The cool thing is it’s felt like playoff baseball,†Hedges said, “but it still doesn’t come close to what this fan base can do actually in the playoffs. The noise they’re about to make, I keep telling some of these rookies, ‘You haven’t seen anything yet.â€â€
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