What We Learned About Guardians After Series Win Over Red Sox

The Cleveland Guardians take two of three games from the Boston Red Sox and win the season series.

The Cleveland Guardians just keep on winning! Their latest series victory ended with them taking two or three games from the Boston Red Sox. We’re now a month into the MLB season, and with that, more is becoming clear about this Guardians team.

Ben Lively Earned Spot In Guardians Rotation

Ben Lively made his second start of the season in the first game of the series and pitched 6.1 innings, struck out seven batters, issued no walks, and gave up just one run. Not to mention this was during a cold and rainy spring night in Cleveland.

Stephen Vogt called his start “outstanding” and it’s hard to disagree with that.

There are still many unknowns with the rotation with injuries and underperformances. Lively has demonstrated an ability to throw strikes and eat up innings and deserves a spot in the rotation.

Andres Gimenez Rising Strikeouts

Even though the Guardians won the series, Andres Gimenez probably wants to move on from it as quickly as possible.

Gimenez went hitless against Boston and struck out five times in 11 at-bats. This strikeout rate is alarming, especially with how hot his start to the season was. Gimenez was way too aggressive at the plate and that can’t happen if he wants to stay in the two-hole in the lineup.

Apr 24, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Boston Red Sox catcher Connor Wong (12) gets back to second safely as Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez (0) waits for the throw from catcher Bo Naylor (23) during the fourth inning at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Will Brennan’s Swing Coming Around

Even though Will Brennan had a slow start to the season, he's finally turning it around.

Brennan came into the series with a .220 batting average. He’d been making solid contact through the first month of the season, but nothing much to show for it. Brennan’s performance against Boston does point to him turning it all around.

Chill Will went a cool 4-for-10 against Boston pitching in the series. This included a crucial solo and go-ahead home run in the series finale.

Pitching Depth Could Be A Concern All Season Long

This one isn’t something we learned about the team on the field but throughout the organization. 

The organization announced on Wednesday that Gavin Williams experienced a setback in his rehab and will receive an injection and be shut down for seven days. 

It’s not even May yet and Clevenad is already struggling to keep a consistent five-man rotation together. This isn’t an issue exclusive to the Guardians organization, but it certainly is a growing problem.