CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:
GUARDS DROP FIRST HALF FINALE VS. KANSAS CITY
The Cleveland Guardians are set to open the second half on the road, holding a half-game lead atop the AL Central standings… marked just the fourth time across Terry Francona’s tenure (2013-23) for Cleveland to enter the All-Star break in 1st place, as the club also did so in 3 consecutive campaigns from 2016-18… Cleveland has gone 8-4-1 over club’s last 13 series since May 26 (24-17 record since 5/26). » After taking each of the first 3 games of the series from Kansas City, Cleveland ended the first half with a 4-1 loss to the Royals on Sunday afternoon at Progressive Field…the Guardians struck first, plating their lone run in the 4th after JOSÉ RAMÍREZ reached on a lead-off single and later scored on an RBI-single from ANDRÉS GIMÉNEZ…the Royals offense, however, would get the last word, ultimately pushing across 4 runs against SHANE BIEBER (6.1IP, 9H, 4R-ER, 0BB, 6SO, HR, 2HB, 91 pitches)…the righthander started his afternoon with 4.0 scoreless frames, facing the minimum through 3.0 with the help of a pick-off/caught-stealing and a double-play ball…Kyle Isbel knotted the score at 1-1 with a solo shot to start the 5th…Kansas City then rallied for a trio of 2-out runs in the 6th, getting an RBI-double from Freddy Fermin and a 2-run triple off the bat of Michael Massey.
Cleveland (45-45) sits in 1st place in the AL Central standings, one half-game ahead of 2nd-place Minnesota (45-46) and 5.5 games ahead of 3rd-place Detroit (-5.5G, 39-50)…Guardians have won 3 of 4, 13 of 20, 20 of 33 and 23 of last 39, though have also dropped 39 of last 75 overall since starting the year 9-6.
PREVIOUSLY ON…THE 2023 SEASON
Cleveland opens up its second half of play with a 45-45 (.500) record, owning the top spot in the AL Central…in 2022, the Guards entered the second half with a 46-44 record and finished the season 46-26, en route to a 92-70 record, the club’s 11th AL Central Title, an AL Wild Card Victory and ALDS berth…this marks the 7th straight season Cleveland will be .500-or-better to begin the second half..
Through the first 50 games of the season, the Guardians were 22-28 and ranked in the bottom 5 of MLB in most offensive categories…in the final 40 games of the first half, Cleveland went 23-17 and improved its offense significantly compared to it’s first 50 contests, increasing its batting average by .55 points and BABIP by .61 points, while scoring 1.34 more runs per game and finishing 2nd in hits behind Texas (406).
CLE FIRST 50G VS. LAST 40G MLB RANK COMPARISON
CATEGORY FIRST 50G LAST 40G
BABIP .267 (30th) .328 (1st)
Hits 370 (30th) 399 (2nd)
Batting Average .225 (28th) .280 (2nd)
Doubles 78 (24th) 87 (3rd)
OBP .297 (29th) .334 (6th)
OPS .636 (30th) .751 (7th)
Extra-Base Hits 118 (30th) 76 (9th)
Runs/Game 3.46 (30th) 4.80 (10th)
WE’RE HERE TO MESS WITH TEXAS
The Guardians take on the AL West-leading Texas Rangers for the first of six contests between the clubs this season…Cleveland took 5 of 6 games against the Rangers in 2022 and is 9-3 against Texas since the start of the 2021 season, outscoring them by 24 runs during that span…Cleveland clinched the 2022 AL Central title in its last trip to Globe Life Field on September 25, 2022…during the Terry Francona era, Cleveland is 39-19 against Texas and 20-10 at Globe Life Field, including taking 7 of the last 9 contests at the ballpark…the Guards are 166-182 all-time against the Rangers… this series will feature two of the best offenses in MLB since June 1, as they both rank in the top 5 in MLB in multiple categories during that span
CLEVELAND VS. TEXAS SINCE JUNE 1 (MLB RANK)
TEAM H .AVG 2B .OBP
CLE 343 (2nd) .277 (2nd) 68 (3rd) .332 (5th)
TEX 355 (1st) .276 (3rd) 93 (1st) .343 (3rd)
THE DYNAMIC DUO
The Guardians offense has been led by the duo of JOSH NAYLOR and JOSÉ RAMÍREZ this season…Naylor finished the first half slashing .305/.344/.481 with 11 home runs and 64 RBI (5th in MLB) while Ramírez finished the first 90 games with a slash line of .289/.364/.506 while launching 14 home runs and driving in 53 runs…Naylor and Ramírez have combined for 117 of Cleveland’s 339 RBI this season, accounting for 34.51% of the Guardians run production…the 34.51% rate is the highest of any MLB combo of 2 teammates for their respective team, ahead of New York-NL’s Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor (30.71%)…Naylor currently leads MLB with 21 go-ahead RBI while Ramírez’ 19 are T2nd in MLB with ATL’s Matt Olson…the pair is also top 2 in MLB in game-winning RBI as Naylor is 1st with 12 and Ramirez is 2nd with 11.
Since May 30, Naylor has raised his batting average up .79 points from .226 to .305…he’s hitting .397 (54-for-136) over that span, leading MLB ahead of MIA’s
Luis Arraez (.392)…Naylor is one of just 12 MLB with a batting average above .300… of those 12 hitters, only LAD’s Freddie Freeman, LAA’s Shohei Ohtani and Naylor
have 60-or-more RBI…the last Cleveland hitter with a .300-or-better average through the club’s first 90 games was Michael Brantley in 2018 (.304)…the table shows how Naylor ranks in MLB since May 30.
Ramírez has been on a tear since June 6, hitting safely in 24 of 30 with 12 multi-hit games…he’s hitting .339 (40-for-118) with 8 home runs, 23 RBI, 25 runs, 17 extra-base hits and 16 strikeouts during this stretch…he’s currently riding a 5-game hitting streak dating back to July 5th going (6-for-18) with 2 doubles and a solo home run.
THE STARS OF NOW AND THE STARS OF THE FUTURE
JOSÉ RAMÍREZ represented Cleveland in Seattle at the 2023 MLB All Star Game, his 5th overall selection for the Midsummer Classic…he went 1-for-2 with a double… MMANUEL CLASE was also selected, his 2nd career selection, but was unable to attend.
The Guardians made 21 picks in the MLB Draft last week… Cleveland’s first three selections were C RALPHY VELAZQUEZ (Round 1, pick 23), LHP ALEX CLEMMEY (Round 2, pick 58) and RHP ANDREW WALTERS (Competitive Balance Round 2, pick 62)
TONIGHT’S STARTER – 43 AARON CIVALE RHP
CIVALE ON THE ROAD
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 1-1 1.25 4 4 21.2 14 3 3 8 16
Career 12-11 3.68 38 38 215.0 186 91 88 52 171
CIVALE’S MLB CAREER
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 3-2 2.56 9 9 52.2 40 15 15 16 44
Career 27-23 3.88 72 72 405.2 367 186 175 101 356
TONIGHT’S START
The 28-year-old right-hander is set to take the mound Friday evening for his tenth start of the season, fifth on the road, in the opener of this 3-game set with the Texas Rangers…is making this start on 6 days’ rest; is 6-5 with a 3.40 ERA (40ER/106.0IP) in 20 career starts on 6+ days of rest…is his fourth start this season on 6+ days of rest, last done on July 2 at Chicago-NL (6.0IP, 3H, 1R/ ER, 1BB, 2SO).
FIRST HALF ‘CAP
After opening the season with a 2-hitter in Seattle, Civale took damage in a loss in the 2023 home opener against the Mariners before heading to the Injured List for a 52-day stint due to a strained left oblique…after tossing 5.0 scoreless innings at Minnesota in his return, he split a pair of decisions vs. Boston and at San Diego… after not factoring into 3 consecutive decisions vs. Oakland, vs. Milwaukee and at Chicago-NL, Civale concluded his first half of the season with one of the most effective starts of his career in a win over Kansas City…since his return from the IL, Civale is 2-1 with a 2.48 ERA (11ER/40.0IP) in 7 starts…he has allowed 2-or-fewer earned runs in 7 of his 9 starts this season.
LAST TIME OUT
In his last start on July 7 vs. Kansas City, he earned his third victory of the season after throwing 7.0 scoreless innings with 2 hits, no walks, and a season-high 9 strikeouts…became the 7th pitcher in franchise history to record such a stat line, the first since TRISTON McKENZIE (8.0IP, 1H, 11SO) on August 15, 2021 at Detroit…Civale retired each of the first 10 Kansas City hitters in order before Bobby Witt Jr. roped a double in the 3rd to become the Royals’ first baserunner…Civale struck out the next 2 batters to end the frame…the only other baserunner he allowed was MJ Melendez, who doubled in the 5th and advanced on a wild pitch… Civale proceeded to retire each of the last 8 hitters he faced before his outing came to an end…marks his third career outing of 7.0+ scoreless innings and 2-or-fewer hits allowed (6/11/21 and 4/1/23 vs. Seattle) and his second career outing with 9-or-more strikeouts and 0 walks (8/2/20 vs. MIL).
A+ IN ARLINGTON
In 3 previous starts against the Rangers, Civale holds a 2-1 record with a 1.59 ERA (3ER/17.0IP) with 18 strikeouts and 2 walks…the 1.59 ERA marks his lowest against a single opponent (min. 3GS)…after suffering a loss in a 1-0 defeat in Cleveland on August 5, 2019, he has earned the win in each of his last 2 starts against Texas, both of which took place in Arlington…in his last outing on September 25, 2022, Civale was victorious after throwing 5.0 innings, allowing 2 runs (earned) on 3 hits with no walks and tossing 7 strikeouts…in each of his 3 previous starts against the Rangers, Civale has allowed exactly 3 hits, allowed 2-or-fewer runs and walked one-or-fewer hitter while striking out 7 in 2 of 3 starts vs. Texas…in 2 starts at Globe Life Field, Civale has a 2-0 record with a 1.64 ERA (2ER/11.0IP), 1 walk and 11 strikeouts…tonight marks his 12th career start against the AL West, owning a 5-4 record with a 3.42 ERA (26ER/68.1IP)…is 1-1 with a 2.79 ERA (6ER/19.1IP) in 3 starts against the division this season.
3 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
For his career, Civale is 25-1 with a 3.13 ERA (82ER/236.0IP) in games when he receives 3-or-more runs of support; Cleveland is 34-5 in such contests…on the contrary, he has a 2-22 record with a 4.96 ERA (93ER/168.2IP) in games receiving 2-or-fewer runs of support; Cleveland has gone just 7-26 in those games.
PRESSURE MAKES DIAMONDS
Is holding opposing hitters to a .162 average (6-for-37) with 12 strikeouts and 3 walks with runners in scoring position…over his last 5 starts, opposing batters are 2-for-19 with RISP…with runners on base, he’s holding opposing clubs to a .194 clip (14-for-72), compared to a .215 average (26-for-121) with no one on
TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:
WINS AND LOSSES: Texas will open the 2nd “half” with a 9-G, 10-day homestand against CLE (3 G), TB (3 G), and LAD (3 G) including an off day on Thursday…club went 2-4 on 6-G road trip that ended the 1st “half”…team has dropped 2 straight and is 1-4 in last 5 G, 2-6 in last 8 G, and 3-8 in last 11 G…team is 12-19 (.387) beg. 6/7, 3rd-lowest win pct. in the A.L. and 6th-lowest in MLB…this stretch to end the 1st “half” came after club reached season high point at 20-over on 6/6 (40-20)…team’s 38-28 (.576) record since 4/28 is still 2nd-best in A.L. (BAL is .578, 37-27) and 8th-best in MLB… TEX is 42-33 in last 75 G and 47-35 last 82 G (beg. 4/9).
- At 52-39 (.571), TEX owns the 3rd-best record in the A.L. (TB: .624, 58-35; BAL: .607, 54-35) and T6th-best in MLB…52 wins rank 3rd in A.L. and T5th-most in MLB (60- ATL, 58-TB, 54-BAL, 53-MIA, 52-TEX/ARI).
- The 52-39 mark is T4th-best 91-G start to a season in Washington/Texas franchise history (see chart below).
- Season high point of 20-over came after win 6/6 vs. STL (40-20)…it was just the 8th season in TEX history to be 20- over at any point, and the earliest date/fewest games (6/6 and 60 G) to do it (prev. 6/19 and 70 G in 2016).
STANDINGS: Rangers have a 2.0-game lead in the A.L. West at the break, losing 3.0 games on the lead over 2ndplace HOU by going 2-6 to end the 1st “half”…TEX has owned a lead of 2.0+ G in the division for 52 consecutive days beg. 5/23, as last smaller lead was thru 5/22 (+1.0 GA)…season-best 6.5-G lead in West after win 6/23 at NYY, which was largest division lead since winning the West by 9.0 G in 2016…TEX has had sole possession of 1st place in the West for 69 straight, 76 of 77 and 89 of the last 91 days beg. 4/14.
- TEX has been alone or tied atop the division for 105 of the season’s first 106 days (exception: 4/8).
SERIES STUFF: Texas has dropped 3 straight series and is 0-4-1 in last 5 series since last win (2-1 from 6/19-21 at CWS)…longest drought since 0-6-3 span from 8/23-
9/18/22…has gone 2-6-1 in last 9 series following a stretch of 6 straight series victories from 5/19-6/7, longest span for team since club-record 10 straight series victories from 5/20-6/20/16…club is 17-10-2 overall in series this year, going 8-4- 2 at home and 9-6-0 on the road…is 13-7-2 in last 22 series and 16-8-2 in last 26…TEX has gone 7-3-2 in last 12 series at GLF, just 1-2-1 in last 4.
AT HOME: TEX is 27-18 (.614) at home, 5th-best home record in MLB: TB (.700, 35-15), ATL (.667, 30-15), LAD (.644, 29-16), MIA (.625, 30-18)…marks TEX’s best 45-G start at home since 2019 (28-17)…club has lost 4 of 5 and has a 6-10 mark in Arlington beg. 6/7…has still won 14 of 24, 15 of 26, 19 of 32, and 24 of last 40 at GLF (beg. 4/5)…TEX owns a 113-124 all-time record at GLF (2020-23), 33-25 last 58 G here beg. 9/11/22.
- TEX leads MLB in R (284) and R/G (6.31) at home in 2023…club has 3-R-or-less in 7 of last 16 G in Arlington, going 0-7 in those contests.
SETTLE IN: TEX opens the 2nd “half” with a 9-G homestand, this after road trips of 10+ G following the break in both 2021 and 2022…club opened the 2nd “half” at home in both 2018 and 2019 after 4 straight years on the road 2014-17.
FULL CLEVELAND: CLE is 1 of 2 A.L. teams that TEX has yet to face in 2023 (also MIN)…TEX went 1-5 vs. CLE in ’22, losing season series for a 5th straight year (2017-19, 2021-22)…TEX’s 9-23 (.281) record vs. CLE since start of 2017 is lowest against any A.L. club over that span…TEX is just 1-5 all-time at GLF vs. the Guardians.
BETTER, MAN: The Rangers’ .571 winning pct. is 3rd-best in the A.L. and T6th in MLB, and club’s improvement over its 2022 1st “half” performance was tops in A.L. nd 3rd-largest rise in MLB.
FIRST “HALF” HIGHLIGHTS: Texas held a 2.0-game division lead in the A.L. West at the break, just the 2nd time in the last 10 seasons (excluding 2020) for TEX to hold 1st place at the break (also +6.5 GA at AS break in 2016)…TEX leads MLB with 531 R, .274 BA, 877 H, 338 XBH, .341 OBP…team leads the A.L. with an .801 OPS, .460 SLG, and 1472 TB… Rangers’ 531 R are the 10th-most ever at the All-Star break since the game’s inception in 1933.
- Batters’ MLB-best 5.84 R/G ranks 3rd in club history at the All-Star break (5.97 in 1996, 5.91 in 1998)…Rangers’ +148 run differential ranks 2nd in MLB (TB is +149), easily the best figure in franchise history at AS break (prev. +92 in 1996).
- TEX rotation is 37-20 with a 3.71 ERA, ranking among MLB’s best in starter wins (T1st w/ ATL) and ERA (3rd)… the 37 wins are T5th in club history at the break and already match the team’s 2022 season total.
HERE WE GO: The Rangers put together the club’s 1st winning record in the 1st “half” since 2019 (48-42), and will be seeking to compile a winning mark in the 2nd “half” for the 1st time since 2016 (41-31)…since 2017, TEX is a combined 143-212 (.403) after the AS break, 4th-lowest win pct. in MLB in that span to DET (.375), MIA (.383), and BAL (.394).
BOCH AND TITO: The weekend series features 2 of top 3 in active wins among managers in Bruce Bochy (2055 wins, 10th all-time) and Terry Francona (1919 wins, 13th all-time)… only HOU’s Dusty Baker (2143 wins, 8th all-time) has more wins among active managers…the last Bochy/Francona matchup was 7/17-19/2017 in San Francisco (SF took 2 of 3).
SHORTS: Each of 3 series in this homestand are against teams currently in 1st place in their division…after playing games for 30 of 31 days leading up to the AS break, TEX is not scheduled to play on more than 9 straight days until September (play 23 of season’s final 24 days)…the Texas offense has 5 of the A.L.’s top 15 position players in fWAR: Adolis García (4th, 3.5), Marcus Semien (6th, 3.3), Corey Seager (7th, 3.3), Jonah Heim (8th, 3.3), and Josh Jung (15th, 2.7)…
Rangers also have 3 of A.L.’s top 9 position players in bWAR: Seager (4th, 3.9), Semien (6th, 3.5), and García (9th, 3.3).
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER – #22 Jon Gray, RHP (6-5, 3.29)
TONIGHT: The 31-year-old right-hander is set to make his 17th appearance/start of the season in tonight’s 2nd ‘half’ opener at Globe Life Field…has taken losses in 3 straight and 4 of his last 5 starts (0-4) and has allowed 16 R-15 ER in his last 4 starts (19.1 IP) to spike his season ERA from 2.32 to 3.29, still 12th-lowest among A.L. qualifiers…despite his recent struggles, Gray has still gone 5-4, 2.74 ERA (19 ER/62.1 IP) over his last 10 starts (beg. 5/8) to lower his season ERA from 4.40…will work on extended 8 days’ rest, as his last start came in Texas’ 4-2 defeat on 7/5 at BOS (L, 6.0 IP, 9 H, 4 R-3 ER, 3 BB, 2 SO, 94 pitches/58 strikes)…this is Gray’s 2nd season with Texas after signing a 4-year free agent contract with the club on 12/1/21…was hindered by several injuries last season, but still managed to post a 7-7 record, 3.96 ERA (56 ER/127.1 IP), and 134 strikeouts over 24 starts…prior to joining the Rangers, the right-hander had spent his entire pro career with Colorado, ranking 3rd in Rockies history with 849 strikeouts while also placing among the all-time team leaders with 151 starts, 829.1 innings, and 53 wins from 2015-21…was the 3rd overall selection by Colorado in the 2013 MLB Draft after pitching 2 seasons at the U. of Oklahoma…is a native of the Oklahoma City area, growing up in Chandler…TEX is 8-8 in Gray’s 16 starts in 2023.
LAST START: Suffered his 3rd straight loss in Texas’ 4-2 defeat on 7/5 at BOS (L, 6.0 IP, 9 H, 4 R-3 ER, 3 BB, 2 SO, 94 pitches/58 strikes)…permitted season-high 9 hits, and 2 strikeouts matched season low (6x, last 6/18 vs. TOR)…outdueled by Sox starter Brayan Bello (W, 7.0 IP, 8 H, 2 R-ER, 0 BB, 3 SO)…found himself in early 2-0 defecit after surrendering 2 runs in the bottom of the 1st…exited trailing, 2-4, as Rangers were held scoreless outside of Adolis García’s 2-R HR in the 6th.
HELP ME, PLEASE: Gray received a total of 6 runs in support from the Rangers’ offense over his last 6 starts (1.53 RSA), including a span of 3 straight outings in which he received zero run support from 6/7-24…his 4.94 RSA this season is still 15th-highest among A.L. qualifiers, but is the lowest among current Texas rotation members: Pérez (8.05), Eovaldi (6.88), Heaney (5.97), Dunning (5.58).
STILL ROLLING: Despite taking losses in 4 of his last 5 starts (0-4), Gray is still 5-4, 2.74 ERA (19 ER/62.1 IP) over his last 10 starts (beg. 5/8)…opponents are batting .214/.277/.318/.595 (47-220) with just 13 XBH (5 HR, 8 2B) in that span, incl. opp. BA’s of .153 (15-98) vs. LHB and .262 (32-122) vs. RHB…he ranks among A.L. qualifiers over that span in H/9 (4th, 6.79), opp. OPS (4th), wins (T6th), ERA (7th), WHIP (8th, 1.01), and opp. BA (9th).
VS. CLEVELAND: Tonight’s outing will be Gray’s 3rd career game/start against Cleveland…made first 2 career app. against the Guardians last season on 6/7/22 at CLE (L, 5.0 IP, 6 H, 5 R-ER, 4 BB, 3 SO) and 9/23/22 vs. CLE (ND, 5.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R-0 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO)…lone run allowed in latter start at Globe Life Field was unearned due to a throwing error by Texas catcher Kevin Plawecki.
AT HOME: Has seen far better results in 8 starts on the road (4-2, 2.31 ERA) than in 8 starts at home (2-3, 4.27 ERA) this season…has allowed 11 R-ER over his last 2 starts (8.1 IP) at Globe Life Field to spike his home ERA from 2.61…opponents are batting .251/.326/.401/.728 (42-167) with 7 HR vs. Gray in Arlington vs. .207/.276/.323/.599 (34-164) with 4 HR in his away outings.
COMPLETE GAME: Was tough-luck loser in start on 6/7 vs. STL, a 1-0 Rangers defeat (CG, 9.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R-ER, 0 BB, 12 SO, 1 HR, 100 pitches/76 strikes)… according to Stathead, it marked just the 2nd time in modern MLB history that a pitcher took the loss despite 9+ IP, 12+ SO, 4-or-fewer hits, 1 R allowed, and zero BB…the other instance?: TB’s James Shields on 10/2/12 vs. BAL…the lone run in Gray’s loss to the Cards was a solo HR by Alec Burleson in the 8th inning…it was the 23rd instance of a TEX starter taking a 1-0 loss in a CG, 1st since Matt Harrison on 9/22/12 at SEA…produced 2nd-highest game score of his career (87), trailing only CG SHO on 9/17/16 vs. SD (95 game score).
SCORELESS STREAKS: Has produced 2 longest scoreless streaks of his career since the start of May: 20.0 IP (5/26-6/7) and 17.0 IP (5/8-20)…Gray’s loss on 6/7 vs. STL ended spans in which he won a career-best 5 consecutive starts (5/8-6/2) along with a career-high 6-G win streak (4/9-6/2)…Gray was the 1st Ranger to win 5 consecutive starts since Lance Lynn from 6/17-7/11/19…Rangers went 5-0 in his 5 May starts, with Gray going 4-0, 1.95 (7 ER/32.1 IP) over 5 GS in May, 2nd-lowest monthly ERA of his career (min. 4 GS) to only a 1.89 figure over 5 G/GS in July 2016.
2023: Has allowed 3-or-fewer runs in 11 of his 16 starts…opp. BA by time thru the lineup: 1st (.223, 29-130), 2nd (.259, 30-116), 3rd (.210, 17-81), 4th (.000, 0-4)…number of GS in ’23 by starting catcher: 9-Heim, 6-León, 1-Garver…Rangers went 5-0 in his 5 May starts, with Gray going 4-0, 1.95 (7 ER/32.1 IP) in 5 GS for the month, 2nd-lowest monthly ERA of his career (min. 4 GS) to only 1.89 over 5 G/GS in July 2016…recorded 1,000th career strikeout on 4/26 at CIN (Spencer Steer)…made early exit in start on 4/15 at HOU (ND, 2.0 IP, 1 R-ER) after he took a liner off his right forearm.
