Guardians Led By Parker Messick Topple Phillies in Series Finale, Roll To 32 Wins

The Cleveland Guardians are atop the American League Central standings by four games.

Sporting a 31-23 record heading into the series finale on Sunday, May 24, against the Philadelphia Phillies, the Guardians wanted to keep their winning ways going. They waltzed to another GuardsBall-type victory, beating the Phillies 3-1 on the road.

Such results shouldn't come as much of a surprise anymore, as nearly every outing seemingly showcases Cleveland's bats and arms all collectively guiding the team to a win.

On the mound, the Guardians turned to starting pitcher Parker Messick to cap off the road stint, with him tossing through 5.2 innings.

He finished with just five hits and two walks given up, with nothing crossing home plate, all while striking out six batters along the way. His efforts were good enough to lower his season ERA down to 2.24, as it still sits as the top mark on the team.

"He knows how to pitch," Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said postgame. "You know, he hasn't been getting ahead. I think that's what the difference we're seeing with Parker, like he's usually in those 0-1, 0-2 counts before you can even breathe. And you know, he's been getting into some tough counts, but he's got the stuff and the pitchability to get out of it.

"And I thought him punching Harper out there in the fifth, that might have been the play of the game. That kind of killed all their momentum, just outstanding by Parker."

This season, he's been arguably Cleveland's best starting pitcher.

He has a staggering 70 strikeouts to just 19 walks, displaying incredible command throughout each and every start on the mound. Along the way, he's only given up 11 earned runs that haven't come from the home run ball, which gives more credit to his ability to limit crowded base paths from turning into much.

"When you have... runners in scoring position, and you have Schwarber and Harper at the plate... it's kind of like every kid's dream growing up," Messick said when thinking back on a big-time moment he got out of a pinch on Sunday. "You know, they're such studs, they're all-stars, such good players. So you have the ability to punch someone out like that, you know.... I never do it to show anyone up. I didn't even look at him, I just yelled at myself coming off the mound, because it's every kid's dream to get out of this situation like that."

And while many of the eyes around the league turn towards the flashy players like Travis Bazzana, Munetaka Murakami and Kevin McGonigle as the potential American League Rookie of the Year candidates, Messick is quietly making his presence felt.

Riding a strong 32-23 record and a winning streak of eight of the last nine, the Guardians have positioned themselves in a great spot to maintain a top spot in the division.

"Outstanding road trip by our guys," Vogt said when reflecting on the team's recent success. "Obviously, this could have been a very different week, two very tough teams and going in on the road, but really, really pleased with the way our guys played on all sides of the ball. I thought we pitched excellent on the road trip, played great defense and got timely hitting.

That's how you win ball games, so really proud of our guys."

Messick's next chance to continue adding to Cleveland's winning ways will be on Saturday, May 30, as the Guardians play host to the Boston Red Sox at 4:10 p.m. EST from Progressive Field.

Add us as a preferred source on Google