CLEVELAND -- There’s danger in overanalyzing a team or player’s early-season numbers, though the end of April is perhaps the earliest barometer to at least take a temperature check on how things are going.
As the Guardians wrapped up their April slate with a 3-1 win over the Rays at Progressive Field on Wednesday, they know their offense is a work in progress, but continue to balance that with their belief it's too soon to make any overarching judgements.
“Guys are just now getting to 100 plate appearances,” manager Stephen Vogt said prior to the game. “There's some people that have earned a longer rope. For us, it's we have our guys, and we're going to stick with it.
“We're always talking about how we can maximize our offense, maximize our defense, maximize our pitching. We're having every conversation. We've got some guys that are off to some slow starts, and they're working. And I feel like we're trending in the right direction.”
The Guardians entered Wednesday ranked 27th in the Majors in runs per game (3.87). In avoiding a three-game sweep to the Rays on Wednesday, Cleveland scattered nine hits to plate its three tallies.
Chase DeLauter went 2-for-3 with a two-run single and a walk, and Brayan Rocchio went 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Kyle Manzardo added a sacrifice fly in the first inning. It backed a stellar start by Gavin Williams, who allowed one unearned run on five hits over 7 2/3 innings, while striking out nine.