Guardians fall in the power rankings despite an easy schedule ahead originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Cleveland Guardians have been the team running things in the American League Central over the last few years. They won the division back in 2024 and did the same thing last season.
Now, they have their eyes set on a three-peat, but they have their work cut out for them, as the Chicago White Sox have been rolling this season and are one of the biggest surprises in baseball.
The White Sox hold a six-game lead over the Guardians, but it's not all bad. There is plenty of baseball left to be played, and Cleveland doesn't have the toughest schedule to close out the regular season.
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Guardians fall in power rankings despite an easy schedule ahead
The Guardians didn't have the easiest schedule last week. They took on the Detroit Tigers, who have continued to play well after trading away Tarik Skubal, and then the San Diego Padres.
In both series, they were only able to muster one win, losing both series 2-1. With this, Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter bumps them down a few spots to No. 19, but it's not the end of the world.
"The Guardians are 4-10 in August following series losses to the Tigers and Padres, but have the easiest remaining schedule in baseball, according to Tankathon. Only six games left against teams with winning records and one series apiece against bottom five teams in these rankings."
Cleveland has the easiest remaining schedule, which means they can finish the season off strong. And anyone who watches baseball knows the postseason is all about who gets hot at the right time.
The Guardians control their own destiny, but they certainly have a ton of work to do. If they can't catch up to the White Sox, they are only 1.5 games out of the final wild card spot in the American League.