Sep 28, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt (12) watches the flag raising after the Guardians beat the Texas Rangers and won the American League Central Division at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt shares inspirational quote ahead of do-or-die Game 2

Originally posted on Cleveland Guardians on SI
By Steve Kubitza | Last updated Oct 1, 2025 9:36 AM ET

Stephen Vogt is in his second year as manager of the Cleveland Guardians. He won American League Manager of the Year in 2024 and seems to be on his way to winning the award once again after his team pulled off a historic divisional comeback to win the AL Central.

Yet a quick glance at social media, which can be far too toxic most of the time, makes it seem like Vogt has no idea what he's doing. That is a natural response from certain fans after any playoff loss.

The manager gets plenty of criticism for his lineups, but fans must remember he does not choose the roster. He is simply doing the best with what he's given, and considering his team pulled off a 15.5-game comeback, Vogt deserves the benefit of the doubt.

Tuesday's frustrating 2-1 loss means Vogt and the Guardians are facing elimination on Wednesday. While fans may be panicking, the manager offered up a quote that instills plenty of confidence in his young group.

Stephen Vogt kept it simple after Tuesday's 2-1 loss. Are you as confident as Vogt about Wednesday?

Photo: Getty Images pic.twitter.com/fI0ANPhsxV
— clevelanddotcom (@clevelanddotcom) September 30, 2025

"Our backs have been against the wall for three months. What's one more day?" Vogt was quoted as saying, per cleveland.com.

He is exactly right. His team has been counted out nonstop since early July, and all they did was something that had never been done before in MLB history. He is giving off a calm feeling, and fans are hoping his players respond with confidence thanks to their manager.

The biggest gripes from fans after Game 1 came because of two players in particular: Johnathan Rodriguez and Jhonkensy Noel. The former was a late addition to the roster because of Nolan Jones' injury, and ended up playing the hero over the weekend. However, he hit below .200 in limited action during the regular season and is not exactly the prime choice for a cleanup hitter in the postseason. He finished the game with two strikeouts.

Meanwhile, Noel had three strikeouts and made a crucial error at first base. But again, the fact Noel had to play at first seems to be something against the front office more than Vogt. CJ Kayfus could have played the position, but Vogt wanted right-handed hitters going up against the ace in Tarik Skubal.

Sometimes, certain decisions don't work out and it's hard to fault any manager when his team goes up against Skubal. The likely Cy Young winner had 14 strikeouts and was throwing well over 100 mph late into the game. That's not an excuse, it's just reality.

All fans can hope for now is that Vogt has his team feeling confident that they can win Game 2 now that they don't have to go up against a superstar like Skubal.

This article first appeared on Cleveland Guardians on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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