The warmest weekend of the year in Cleveland coincided with the coldest performances from the Guardians’ offense this season.
A standout back-to-back start by Ranger Suarez and Zach Wheeler helped the Philadelphia Phillies limit Cleveland to seven total hits in the final two games of the series. The Guardians were missed by a total margin of 10-1.
Interleague action follows Monday for the Guardian, who hosts the Milwaukee Brewers for the three-game series. Cleveland is 3-3 against the National League team during a 12-game stretch, including last week’s Road Series with the Washington Nationals and a trip to the Cincinnati Reds next weekend.
Carlos Santana offered the Guardians their only run with nine sacrifice flys on Saturday in a 7-1 defeat in front of a sold-out crowd, and the hosts never passed the runner 2 base against Wheeler in a 3-0 defeat on Sunday.
“We felt like we had some good swings early from Wheeler, but we didn’t show much about it,” said Stephen Fogg, manager of Cleveland. “Then he went to work afterwards. He would sometimes expand his zone and get weak contact.”
“It feels like we’re getting better, especially from where we started where we are today,” added Vogt, who has won 20 of the team’s past 31 games. “We keep working through it all, but I really like the direction we’re heading.”
Right-handed Ben Lively (2-2, 3.46 ERA) was the Guardians’ most consistent pitcher, but takes on the opener’s correct Freddie Peralta (4-2, 2.18).
This is his sixth career start against Milwaukee since 2023, when he returned to the majors following a two-year stint at Korean baseball institutions. Right-handed is 0-4, with a 3.38 ERA for brewers.
Peralta has walked eight innings over 12 innings against Cleveland, making his ERA 1-1 with 2.84 (two starts). He has the third lowest era in the National League, keeping his opponents at an average of .196, but he is straining the gro caliber on May 4th with his final start against the Chicago Cubs.
“Freddie set the tone against one of the best offensive teams in baseball,” Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy said of his 4-0 home victory. “He denied them and made a big pitch.”
The brewer lost three straights and dropped two games under .500 before bouncing back Sunday with a 4-2 victory over Tampa’s Rays. Christian Elich hit a solo homer and scored two runs on Mother’s Day using a pink bat with the name of his mother, Alesia.
“The pink bat looked like it was working,” Elich said. “It can’t get that bad, so I thought I’d just use it to see what happens. I put it on and it was a good day.
Milwaukee should also get a boost next weekend, when pitcher Brandon Woodruff will be re-entering the turn after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder. The right-hander began his sixth and final rehab on Sunday at Triple A Nashville, giving up the run with two hits with no walks and three strikeouts in three innings.
– Field-level media
