[U7Gohan]

State of the Team

The team had an excellent September, going 17-7 and finishing at a whopping 105-57, good for a whopping 40-win improvement from 2022 and 2nd in MLB to only the 109-53 Dodgers. The team is also fully healthy and intact entering the playoffs, and appears poised for a deep playoff run. They finished 4th in Runs Scored, 3rd in SP ERA, 1st in RP ERA, 1st in Team ERA, 5th in Defensive Efficiency, 2nd in Zone Rating, and 2nd in BsR in the AL. A superteam, through and through.

News Dump

The Guardians have re-opened extension talks with CF Michael A. Taylor. Both sides are highly motivated to keep him in Cleveland beyond 2023, but the Guardians, with their large expenditures this past offseason, are operating on a very limited budget.

The Playoff Roster

Hitters:

C Austin Hedges*: .229/.292/.463, 105 OPS+, 4.8 WAR in 416 PA
C Bryan Lavastida: .184/.241/.342, 59 OPS+, -0.1 WAR
C/DH Bo Naylor*: .205/.281/.373, 80 OPS+
1B Vinnie Pasquantino*: .252/.319/.445, 109 OPS+
2B Andres Gimenez*: .302/.358/.449, 122 OPS+, 33 SB, 5.8 WAR
2B Bryson Stott: .333/.389/.512, 148 OPS+, 2.6 WAR in 222 PA
SS Carlos Correa*: .276/.361/.466, 127 OPS+, 5.3 WAR in 476 PA
SS Jermaine Palacios: .295/.319/.455, 109 OPS+, 0.8 WAR in 116 PA
3B Jose Ramirez*: .264/.336/.515, 131 OPS+, 15 SB, 4.5 WAR
LF Michael Brantley*: .299/.354/.403, 110 OPS+, 0.1 WAR since the trade
CF Michael A. Taylor*: .218/.275/.337, 69 OPS+, 1.8 WAR
CF Oscar Mercado: .235/.293/.403, 90 OPS+, 0.8 WAR in 167 PA
RF George Valera*: .296/.380/.550, 154 OPS+, 4.5 WAR

* = Starting Lineup

Pitchers:

SP Shane Bieber: 3.64 ERA, 3.63 FIP, 11.3 K/9, 4.1 WAR
SP Sandy Alcantara: 3.39 ERA, 3.55 FIP, 8.7 K/9, 4.4 WAR
SP Sean Hjelle: 4.57 ERA, 4.25 FIP, 7.7 K/9, 0.8 WAR since the trade
SP Zach Plesac: 3.87 ERA, 3.86 FIP, 7.3 K/9, 3.0 WAR
SP Nick Martinez: 3.07 ERA, 4.31 FIP, 5.5 K/9, 0.7 WAR since the trade

CL Emmanuel Clase: 0.84 ERA, 1.96 ERA, 10.2 K/9, 50/52 SV/OPP, 3.5 WAR
RP James Karinchak: 2.20 ERA, 2.79 FIP, 14.0 K/9, 2.0 WAR
RP Jakob Hernandez: 3.27 ERA, 3.09 FIP, 12.2 K/9, 1.2 WAR
RP Brad Boxberger: 2.50 ERA, 2.84 ERA, 10.8 K/9, 1.6 WAR
RP Nick Sandlin: 3.47 ERA, 3.78 FIP, 12.4 K/9, 0.6 WAR
RP Denny Bentley: 1.62 ERA, 2.88 FIP, 10.1 K/9, 1.2 WAR
RP Seranthony Dominguez: 4.01 ERA, 3.74 FIP, 9.1 K/9, 0.5 WAR
RP Joey Cantillo: 2.43 ERA, 2.24 ERA, 11.7 K/9, 1.1 WAR as RP

SS Brandon Crawford's dismal performance cost him a spot on the roster.

Minor League Report

The Guardians sit at 20th in MLB in the farm system rankings, with four Top 100 prospects:

SS Angel Martinez (2.5, 3.0) - #32
SP Ryan Murphy (2.5, 3.0) - #66
SP Nazier Mule (0.5, 3.0) - #75
SP Tanner Burns (2.5, 3.0) - #87


Around the League

Standings and Playoffs Preview

The playoff seeding is as follows:

AL:

1. Guardians (105-57)
2. Rays (98-64)
3. Angels (92-70)
4. Orioles (85-77)
5. Mariners (85-77)
6. White Sox (84-77)

The Yankees missed the 3rd Wild Card by 1 game.

NL:

1. Dodgers (109-53)
2. Cardinals (100-62)
3. Mets (89-73)
4. Padres (86-76)
5. Phillies (84-78)
6. DBacks (81-81)

The Cubs missed the 3rd Wild Card by 2 games.

For the AL Wild Card Series, the winner of the Mariners and Orioles will face the Guardians, while the winner of the White Sox and Angels will face the Rays.

For the NL Wild Card Series, the winner of the Phillies and Padres will face the Dodgers, while the winner of the DBacks and Mets will face the Cardinals.

League Leaders

AL:

Hitter WAR:

1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (TOR) - 8.2
2. Josh Jung (TEX) - 7.5
3. Adley Rutschman (BAL) - 6.5

AVG:

1. Vidal Brujan (TBR) - .324
2. Adam Frazier (LAA) - .316
3. Bo Bichette (TOR) - .312

OPS:

1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (TOR) - 1.040
2. Josh Jung (TEX) - .936
3. Adley Rutschman (BAL) - .930

HR:

1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (TOR) - 56
2. Yordan Alvarez (HOU) - 39
3. Josh Jung (TEX) - 37

SB:

1. Vidal Brujan (TBR) - 53
2. Cedric Mullins (BAL) - 41
3. Julio Rodriguez (SEA) - 37

Pitcher WAR:

1. Shane McClanahan (TBR) - 5.0
2. Shane Baz (TBR) - 4.7
3. Lucas Giolito (CWS) - 4.7

ERA:

1. Shane Baz (TBR) - 2.56
2. Lucas Giolito (CWS) - 3.00
3. Joe Ryan (MIN) - 3.06

SV:

1. Emmanuel Clase (CLE) - 50
2. Matt Barnes (SEA) - 44
3. Liam Hendriks (CHW) - 41

NL:

Hitter WAR:

1. Shohei Ohtani (LAD) - 8.0
2. Joey Gallo (LAD) - 7.4
3. Bryce Harper (PHI) - 7.4

AVG:

1. Alek Thomas (ARI) - .315
2. Ketel Marte (ARI) - .303
3. Bryce Harper (PHI) - .303

OPS:

1. Bryce Harper (PHI) - 1.040
2. Shohei Ohtani (LAD) - 1.026
3. Joey Gallo (LAD) - .914

HR:

1. Shohei Ohtani (LAD) - 54
2. Bryce Harper (PHI) - 49
3. Ian Happ (CHC) - 45

SB.

1. Trea Turner (LAD) - 37
2. Jazz Chisholm Jr. (MIA) - 36
3. Manuel Margot (MIL) - 36

Pitcher WAR:

1. Zack Wheeler (PHI) - 5.3
2. Max Fried (ATL) - 4.7
3. Max Scherzer (NYM) - 4.5

ERA:

1. Jacob deGrom (NYM) - 2.90
2. Jack Flaherty (STL) - 3.06
3. Max Scherzer (NYM) - 3.20

SV:

1. Yerry De Los Santos (PIT) - 49
2. Ryan Pressly (LAD) - 46
3. Giovanny Gallegos (STL) - 44


Major Extensions

None


The next post will be the ALDS preview. This is a superteam, but anything can happen in the playoffs, and the team's soft spots will really be tested there. Let's do it.