There’s an old saying: winning is fun.
And let’s just say, the Guardians are having a lot of fun as of late.
With Thursday’s win over Oakland, the Guardians are now fun-havers (re: winners) of eight of their last ten contests.
It’s been a major boon and has come at just the right time.
Both the White Sox and Twins are scuffling through their own games currently, with both clubs going 4-6 over their last ten games.
Now, the Guardians sit two games ahead of Chicago for second place, and only three games out of first.
But the real story of Thursday’s game was Oscar Gonzalez, who was seemingly everything, everywhere, all at once.
Gonzalez’s Night
The recent call-up posted a four-hit night, each instrumental in keeping Cleveland in the ball game.
Gonzalez was only recently called up in order to replace an injured Franmil Reyes.
Gonzalez plays a very aggressive brand of baseball at the plate, which can give a young player problems in the pros.
But Manager Terry Francona kept encouraging Gonzalez:
“We kind of told him, ‘Hey, don’t worry about walking. Just try to see how many good swings you can get at good pitches.’ Because he has bat speed, he can hit the ball the other way, he’s not like a lot of young right-handed power hitters. He doesn’t pull off very much. He stays through the ball and hits the ball to right field. He’s just ultra-aggressive. If he stays in the zone, he’s going to do some damage.”
Needless to say, fans were impressed by Gonzalez’s showing:
Oscar Gonzalez is 4-4 tonight .. and is now batting .. .404
— Al Pawlowski (@AlPawlowski) June 10, 2022
I can honestly tell you – the sound of Oscar Gonzalez going 100mph into that wall to try and make the catch made me fear the worst..
This kid is unreal – literally gets back up, stays in the game.. TOUGH AS NAILS
Put this kid behind Myles Garrett on the #Browns D-Line..
WOW
— Jensen Lewis (@JLEWFifty) June 10, 2022
OSCAR GONZALEZ LEADOFF DOUBLE OFF THE VERY TOP OF THE LEFT FIELD WALL 🚨🚨🚨
JUSSSST MISSED HIS FIRST MAJOR LEAGUE HOME RUN
KID IS DIFFERENT. #Fortheland
— 216 Baseball Podcast (@216BaseballPod) June 9, 2022
Oscar Gonzalez is such a smooth hitter really good looking ball player #ForTheLand
— Chuck 22 (@Chuck63618910) June 9, 2022
Love what I’m seeing from Oscar Gonzalez
— Myles Straw Enthusiast (26-26) (@DariusMVP216) June 10, 2022
Oscar Gonzalez has played 13 games in the majors, he has 7 multi-hit games already
— Joe Collins (@joedcollins1) June 10, 2022
Oscar Gonzalez is here and I’m all for it
— Brady Hamilton (@Brady_216) June 9, 2022
Oscar Gonzalez is turning into a special player for the #Guardians https://t.co/7VUwSxNuYc
— Tommy Wild (@tommywild28) June 10, 2022
That dude Oscar Gonzalez got that dawg in em
— The Guardians Guy (@jacob_hamm) June 10, 2022
Youth Movement
There’s so much to be excited about with Cleveland’s future.
And Thursday’s game was a perfect demonstration of what fans hope is to come for many years.
Not only did the youngster Gonzalez have a strong game, but so too did the other two young studs: Steven Kwan and Andrés Giménez.
Kwan, who was in the midst of his own skid, recorded three hits and an RBI, blazing down the first base line to reach on an infield hit.
Giménez, for his part, snagged a clutch hit and RBI in the eighth inning to give Cleveland the go-ahead lead.
Gonzalez, Kwan, and Giménez have the potential to lead the next generation of Guardians to success.
Throw in José Ramirez and Josh Naylor (another strong young player), and the batting is well-rounded.
Also, add in that Cleveland’s farm has several juicy pitching prospects in Gavin Williams and Daniel Espino, and things look bright and sunny long-term.
Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco might be gone, but this team’s young players give fans a reason to move on in peace.
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