Cleveland Guardians Franchise Receives Questionable Grade For 2024

The Cleveland Guardians 2024 season was full of record-setting moments.

Sep 21, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) celebrates with pinch hitter David Fry (6) after hitting a three run home run against the St. Louis Cardinals during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

As 2024 comes to a close, now is a great time to look back and reflect on the moves, success, and areas of improvement that each franchise has made over the last calendar year.

Bleacher Report recently did this and graded every franchise's past year, including the regular season and their off-season moves up until now.

The Cleveland Guardians received an intriguing grade of "B." According to their breakdown, this means, "It was a mostly positive experience."

Here's what Zachary D. Rymer of B/R had to say about the Guardians year:

"Yes, the Guardians also won 92 games in 2022. But that shouldn't erase how they were one of the most improved teams from 2023 to 2024, with a plus-16 boost in the win column."

"The Guardians were never a bad team this year, but at no point did they feel like a truly great one. Their consistently hapless starting pitching had everything to do with that."

"One also feels for Guardians fans that Ramírez has been the team's only constant over the last decade. Josh Naylor and Andrés Giménez weren't franchise icons or anything, but the constant roster churn is getting to be a tired act."

Sep 16, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt (12) calls to the bullpen during the third inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

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This analysis feels like the product of recency bias and a reaction to the Andres Gimenez and Josh Naylor trade the front office just made and a disappointing end of the season during the postseason.

B/R's criteria for an "A" is that the year "It was a year for the books," making Cleveland's grade that much more intriguing. The 2024 season was actually a year full of broken records for the Guardians.

Stephen Vogt became the first rookie skipper to win Manager of the Year since Rocco Baldelli in 2019. The 2024 Guardians also broke franchise history with their best start to the season, surpassing some of the legendary 90s teams.

Then there is Jose Ramirez, who set a career-high in home runs and steals and was just one homer shy of joining the elite 40-40 club. Emmanuel Clase became the first reliever to be named Cy Young finalist since 2008 and had one of the best seasons a closer has ever seen.

Finally, the team reached the ALCS for the first time in eight years.

Was it a perfect season for the Guardians? No. Have they made some questionable moves since the regular season ended? Yes.

However, only one team wins the World Series. It's okay to reflect on a year, including its low points, and accept it was a memorable season.