N&N: Three Positives From the Week of September 22nd

As an overwhelmingly positive regular season comes to an end, here are three feel-good moments from the final week.

As the regular season comes to a close on a bit of a sour note, there are many other positives to focus on as the Cleveland Guardians face the 2024 postseason.

2 Seed Locked In

Even though the Guardians did not get to play their final game on Sunday, it really didn’t matter all that much. Cleveland locked in the second seed in the playoff bracket, meaning they don’t have to play in the Wild Card series. They have the next five days off to prepare for the ALDS in which they will face off against either the Detroit Tigers or the Houston Astros.

The Guardians have a 7-6 record this season versus the Tigers, but a 1-4 record against the Astros including a two-game sweep this past weekend. While there’s no telling exactly what would happen in a five game set against either of these teams, many fans (myself included) are hoping to face off against Detroit. Not only do we have a winning record against them, we’ve simply played against them much more often this year and have a better idea of what we’re facing.

Walters Making Noise

After making his MLB debut on September 12th, relief pitcher Andrew Walters has been everything the team hoped he would be. Across 8.2 innings so far, Walters has given up zero earned runs and collected six strikeouts. He has walked five batters, but none of them have come around to score. His 0.00 ERA heading into the playoffs is exactly what this team needs.

While the Guardians are known for having the best bullpen in MLB, it certainly doesn’t hurt to add another strong arm. If a situation would arise in the postseason where the team would need to have a bullpen game, it would almost feel like a guaranteed win. There’s not a whole lot of teams that could say that, but guys like Walters make it easy for the Guardians.

Ramírez Just Misses History

By canceling Sunday’s regular season finale against the Houston Astros, MLB robbed third baseman José Ramírez of the chance to add his name to the baseball history books. He ended his season with 39 home runs and 41 steals, just one home run away from the illustrious 40/40 club. While there’s no guarantee that he would’ve hit that final home run if the game were played, the fact that we will never get to find out is heartbreaking.

So what makes this a positive? The fact that we got to see him get this close. The fact that we have the privilege of watching him play for our team every day. Ramírez was not bitter about just missing out on the feat, saying he’ll just do it next year. That kind of attitude is what makes him so special. Any team would be lucky to have Ramírez in the hot corner, but we won’t be sharing him.