CLEVELAND, Ohio — Sunday night, a sea of red has washed over Progressive Field, with Cleveland Guardians fans cheering on the team in hope of one more victory over the New York Yankees to clinch the American League Division Series.
The Guardians are coming off an epic win against the Yankees Saturday night, thanks to yet another walk-off hit by Oscar Gonzalez, putting the Guardians up 2-1 in the best-of-5 ALDS.
The Guardians’ perseverance is something that has surprised critics of this Cleveland team, many who called the team “too weak” and “too young and inexperienced.”
The “Guardiac Kids,” a nickname given to the team this season, however, have been out to prove all the naysayers wrong. And they’ve certainly been succeeding.
Ask any Guardians fan and they’ll tell you it’s the drive, the fight and the team’s superb and simply unmatched spirit that sets them apart from other teams in the MLB.
“So much potential, so much spirit,” said Rachel Griffin after the Guardians win over the Yanks Saturday night in Cleveland.
Rachel’s husband, Nate agreed, still reeling from the Game 3 win.
“I have never been so excited in my whole entire life,” he said.
This Guardians team has defied the odds to get here. They’re not only the youngest team, right now, in Major League Baseball, but they also became the first to win a division with at least 16 rookies making their major league debuts. The team, which currently has 17 rookies, clinched the American League Central title last month.
“Seventeen rookies! The Yankees (are just) too small, too small,” said Alex Jones, who watched Game 3 with his dad, Scott.
Issac Rogers, who busks as a side hustle, was playing music outside Progressive Field before and after Saturday night’s game and compared the excitement to the Cleveland Cavaliers’ epic 2016 season.
“Man I’ve never seen it like that,” said Rogers, referring to Guardians fans after the Game 3 win.
“This team knows how to win and this team does it with rookies,” said another Guardians fan.
One of those rookies is outfielder Steven Kwan, who’s had one heck of a debut year in the major leagues, helping the team secure the win a few times during this postseason. Kwan is 25 years old. The average age for a current Guardians player is 26.
“This team is athletic. They take first to thirds like nobody else,” said one Guardians fan.
