Guardians secure AL playoff spot with walk-off win over Twins

CLEVELAND — Drenched in champagne and beer, manager Stephen Vogt stood in the center of the clubhouse, triumphantly raising a faux-jeweled championship belt over his head like a victorious boxer.

Cleveland will be fighting for a real title in October.

Led by their 39-year-old rookie manager, who has been pushing all the right buttons for months, and a devastating bullpen, the Guardians clinched one of the AL's six playoff spots with a 3-2 win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday, leading Cleveland in its 42nd major league comeback.

A most unexpected season will include a postseason.

One of baseball's youngest teams can end decades of bitter playoff defeat for a franchise suffering the longest active drought without a World Series title in baseball.

“This is really special,” said Vogt, a former All-Star catcher who had no managerial experience when the Guardians hired him unexpectedly in November. “The goal is to get in, and from here we'll keep pushing. If you get in, you have a chance.”

The Guardians are the second AL team to qualify for the 2024 postseason, with only the New York Yankees securing a spot on Wednesday and set to return to the playoffs after a year-long absence – an eternity for their pampered fan base.

New York was considered a competitor, but Cleveland was not.

But in their first season under Vogt, who was shoveling cow manure on his Washington farm when the team management called and offered him the job, the Guardians were one of the best stories and biggest surprises in baseball.

Not much was expected of them after a disappointing 76-win season that ended with the resignation of popular coach Terry Francona. Going into this year, it felt like the road back to title contention could be a long one.

But the Guardians have been at the top of the no-longer-ridiculous AL Central since mid-April, and in a season where there seems to be no clear favorite, they go into the playoffs with a legitimate chance of winning their first title since 1948 – back when they still knew themselves as the Indians.

Vogt wasn't entirely sure what kind of team he had during spring training in Arizona, but a 7-2 win over Oakland, Seattle and Minnesota to start the season convinced him his young squad could develop into something bigger.

“I didn't know which guys were capable of what,” he said. “And until you see them play, you really don't know. But if you come to spring training and don't expect to win the World Series, don't come.”

“Even on that first away trip we saw something special and saw that this team could maybe do it. Now we are in the thick of it. We have a chance.”

Lacking big names and big hitters in the lineup, Cleveland has found success by playing an aggressive style of play. They call it “guards ball” and place a heavy emphasis on patient at-bats, taking out the opposing starter early, taking extra bases, and playing solid defense.

Everyone contributes their part and Vogt is proud to be able to use his entire squad.

It doesn't hurt that he can rely on the meanest bullpen in baseball, anchored by All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase, who hasn't blown a save since May and could become the league's first reliever to win the Cy Young Award in 32 years.

The guards don't give up.

On Wednesday night, they trailed by two runs in the 10th inning, but then stormed back with three runs to shock the Twins. And after the Minnesota bullpen held them hitless for 5⅔ innings on Thursday, they outscored their rivals again, improving their home record to 48-28.

“This is us,” said Andrés Giménez, who brought José Ramírez home from second base in the 10th inning. “This is the Cleveland Guardians.”

A comeback earlier this week left Vogt in tears during his post-game press conference.

“I love these guys,” he said.

The feeling is mutual.

Backup catcher and de facto team announcer Austin Hedges, who won a World Series title with Texas last year, re-signed with Cleveland as a free agent before this season. He credits Vogt with bringing the Guardians closer together and getting the best out of them.

“One of the most extraordinary people I've ever met,” Hedges said. “Not just as a manager, but as a man. This guy is a leader. We had one of the greatest managers in baseball history for a long time, and I loved Terry Francona with all my heart.”

“This is probably the best year as a manager I have ever had in my life.”

Vogt will break new ground in a few weeks, leading the Guardians into a month where every throw, every swing, every moment will be amplified.

Hedges has experienced this before. Before winning it all with the Rangers, he was released by the Guardians after the 2022 season, which ended with them blowing a 2-1 lead in the Division Series against the Yankees.

He returned to Cleveland for another try.

“I feel like we had unfinished business in 2022,” he said. “We feel like we really had a good chance to make it to the end. It's tough to lose to a heartbreaking opponent in the postseason, and being away last year, all I could think about was getting back here with my guys.”

“We all want exactly the same thing.”