Despite first series loss, Guards weathering gauntlet of early schedule

ATLANTA -- There has been little let-up in the Guardians’ schedule early this season, as their first five series have come against expected playoff contenders in the Mariners, Dodgers, Cubs, Royals and Braves.

Cleveland has held up strong in that stretch, going 9-7, but suffered its first series loss of the season this weekend. The Guardians fell, 13-1, to the Braves on Sunday in the rubber match of a three-game series at Truist Park.

Here are a few thoughts on what we saw this weekend:

Rotation hiccups
The Guardians’ starting rotation has started the season strong, following its dominant finish to the 2025 season. Cleveland’s staff entered this weekend second in the Majors in ERA (2.67). But it had some hiccups in Atlanta.

Slade Cecconi had a tough finish to his outing Friday after rolling through his first five innings. On Sunday, Tanner Bibee was charged with a career-high eight earned runs on 11 hits (tied for a career high) and one walk with four strikeouts over 4 2/3 innings.

“It just felt like Tanner really never got into a rhythm,” manager Stephen Vogt said. “It just seemed like he was having trouble really landing everything. Just one of those nights where Tanner just didn't have his best stuff.”

Bibee threw 35 pitches in the second inning, when Atlanta sent seven batters to the plate. Bibee’s average four-seam velocity Sunday was 94.1 mph, or right around his season average through three starts of 94.2 mph. He finished with an 18.4 percent whiff rate (eight whiffs on 44 swings). That’s tied for his 13th-lowest whiff rate through 96 career regular-season or postseason starts.

"I felt good at the beginning,” Bibee said. “Toward the end, obviously, I think that really super long second inning probably got me a little bit. I feel like the average [velocity] was still pretty good.”

Cecconi threw six scoreless innings against the Cubs in his last start before Friday, while Bibee had a 3.29 ERA over 13 2/3 innings over his first three starts this season. Their outings in Atlanta ended sour. They will look to turn the page.

RISPY business
The Guardians entered this weekend ranked second in the Majors in average with runners in scoring position (.308). But they ranked last in plate appearances (91) and tied for 22nd in RBIs (31).

Those stats don’t tell the entire story; the Guardians have faced five expected contenders with good starting pitchers, and we know the weather in Cleveland isn’t exactly kind to hitters in April. In Atlanta, the Guardians went 4-for-22 with RISP and left 23 men on base in the series.

Sunday, the Guardians went 0-for-7 with RISP and left eight runners on base. They had a tough matchup in lefty Chris Sale, who allowed one run on eight hits and one walk with six strikeouts over six innings.

Cleveland’s lone tally off Sale came on Rhys Hoskins’ first home run in a Guardians uniform. Hoskins noted he had chances in the first inning (when he struck out with two outs and runners on second and third) and the third (when he grounded out with runners on the corners and two outs).

“When you get opportunities against a guy like that, you've got to cash in,” Hoskins said. “I didn't and we found ourselves behind. It's not a good combo to find yourself behind early against a guy like that."

We saw a similar missed chance early-ish on Friday. Four consecutive Guardians hitters reached with one out in the fifth inning, but only one run came across. Atlanta scored six runs in the sixth.

“I thought we put a lot of pressure on [Sale] throughout the entire outing,” Vogt said. “We just weren't able to get that big hit with runners in scoring position. Really happy with our at-bats off of him. … I thought we made him come into the zone, and we squared some balls up and made loud outs.”

Martínez flashing
One of the most encouraging returns from the weekend was the continued performance of Angel Martínez, who went 4-for-9 across Friday and Saturday. Even with an 0-for-4 night on Sunday, the 24-year-old is slashing .310/.383/.452 with three doubles, one homer and six RBIs over 48 plate appearances this season.

Three of Martínez’s hits came as a left-handed hitter. He finished 2025 hitting .197 with a .545 OPS from the left side of the plate. He is 9-for-23 (.391) so far this year.

"His growth as a player, as a hitter, you're really starting to see," Vogt said. "His first couple of weeks, it's been pretty special what he's done."