Front office did its part, now Guardians’ players must respond – Terry Pluto

CLEVELAND, Ohio – It was before Tuesday night’s game when I listened to Stephen Vogt’s press conference.The Guardians manager was excited about the four trades made within a 48-hour period to upgrade the roster.“They (the front office) did a phenomenal job of improving us in areas where we need to improve,” he said. “Now it’s our turn to do our part and win some games.”The Guardians promptly went out and lost 6-2 to the Mets.The Guardians were 2-for-13 with runners in scoring position. The Mets walked eight Cleveland players. None of them scored.Granted, it was one game …But Wednesday night, they lost 6-5 to the Mets in 10 innings. They had a 5-4 lead entering the ninth inning. Closer Cade Smith walked two hitters and had one of his rare bad games. But the Guardians have had too many games like this since the All-Star break. They are 6-12 in that span.The Guardians have acquired left-hander Foster Griffin from the Nationals.AP Photo/Erik S. LesserThey did their partGuardians ownership and the front office could have stayed their original course of playing the kids. Instead, they added veterans Jo Adell, Nathaniel Lowe and Foster Griffin in trades. Lowe and Griffin are free agents at the end of the season, meaning they could end up being “rental” type players for 2026 only. Adell is under team control through the end of the 2027 season.Let’s hope things change, because the Guardians have played sloppy defense, had some poor base running. Clutch hitting has been dreadful all season.Cleveland is batting .228 with runners in scoring position. That’s 28th out of 30 teams.With two outs and runners in scoring position – the ultimate clutch hitting situation – they are batting .190, which is 30th.Adell and Lowe were both batting over .300 with runners in scoring position this season when they joined the Guardians.Here’s a look at what some of the Guardians are batting with runners in scoring position this season:.306: Steven Kwan..266: Chase DeLauter..262: Travis Bazzana..231: Brayan Rocchio..226: Kyle Manzardo. He is now at Class AAA Columbus..220: Rhys Hoskins. .207: Patrick Bailey..200: Gabriel Arias..192: Jose Ramirez..150: Austin Hedges.Steven Kwan is Cleveland's best clutch hitter this season, hitting .305 with runners in scoring position.Joshua Gunter, cleveland.comMissing Jose RamirezCleveland fans are getting a rough lesson about what their favorite team’s lineup is like when Ramirez is having a difficult season.Overall, he is hitting .233 (.720 OPS) with 10 homers and 35 RBI.Ramirez injured the hamate bone in his left hand in June and had surgery. After coming back (probably too soon), he’s batting .195 (8-for-41). He still has inflammation in the left hand and sat out Tuesday’s game. He also was out of the opening lineup Wednesday, then was a pinch runner in the 10th inning.In the previous two seasons, Ramirez averaged 35 homers, 101 RBI while batting .277 (.850 OPS). No one else in this lineup is capable of putting up those numbers. More help comingCleveland just promoted Angel Genao from Class AAA Columbus. He delivered four hits in his first four MLB at bats Wednesday. The 22-year-old Genao competes with Ralphy Velazquez for the top spot on the various Guardians’ prospect lists. He can play all infield positions except first base. Between Class AA and AAA this season, Genao is batting .300 (.875 OPS) with 13 homers and 53 RBI. He also has 20 doubles and 11 stolen bases.The fact Cleveland has promoted him is another sign the front office wants to win now. He probably will play about four times a week, filling in at second, short and third. Here’s a breakdown of Genao’s game from a recent Baseball America story, starting with “He makes a ton of contact in the zone and almost never misses an in-zone fastball. Doesn’t chase much, but when does, he’s able to do damage.” Here’s more from Baseball America:At least major league average raw power.Will play somewhere on the dirt (SS/3B/2B).Has performed at every stop.Switch-hitter with great metrics from both sides … The Guardians need Jose Ramirez to get back to being king of the diamond.John Kuntz, cleveland.comSending messagesThe Guardians began telling veterans it’s time to produce when they sent Daniel Schneemann to the minors on July 24. Schneemann is one of Vogt’s favorite players because the 29-year-old can play every position on the diamond except catcher.But Schneemann was batting .206 (.597 OPS) when demoted to Class AAA. That .206 mark exactly matched what he hit in 2025. His OPS last year was an underwhelming .636.That .206 batting average came on 615 plate appearances from 2025-26.Then David Fry and Manzardo were sent to the minors Monday, making room for Lowe and Adell on the roster. Both of those players were veterans who had spent all of 2025 on the Cleveland 26-man roster.It would have been hard to imagine that Fry, Manzardo or Schneemann would have been sent to the minors when the 2026 season opened. And all three? Impossible to see that coming.Dating back to 2025, Fry is batting .176 (.615 OPS) in 289 at-bats. Fry has not been the same hitter since he injured his right (throwing) elbow and had Tommy John surgery before the 2025 season.Manzardo is hitting .215 (.684 OPS) with 13 homers and 39 RBI. In his last 30 games, he’s batting .169 (.590 OPS).Wednesday, Gabriel Arias was designated for assignment as the Guardians promoted Genao. Meanwhile, after a slow start this season, Kwan is batting .441 since the All-Star break. His outfield defense remains spectacular. He is one veteran responding to the challenge. The Guardians dropped to 57-58, but they are within three games of the first place White Sox in the Central Division. The front office and ownership are serious about putting the team in position to win its third consecutive Central Division title.Now, as Vogt said, it’s their turn and that begins with them simply playing smarter and better baseball.