Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

The Guardians Spent A Week Dominating Their Rivals

Originally posted on The Cold Wire | By Curt Bishop | Last updated 9/23/22

The race for the American League Central crown isn’t officially over, but it may be very soon.

The Cleveland Guardians were back at it again on Thursday night.

Led by Shane Bieber, who went 7.2 innings and allowed just two runs on seven hits while striking out five batters, the Guards won the series finale by a final of 4-2 over the Chicago White Sox and picked up a crucial series sweep.

The Guardians now lead the AL Central by seven games over the slumping South Siders and have a magic number of six to officially wrap up the division race.

The win was their 83rd win of the year.

The @CleGuardians are starting to close in on the AL Central crown. pic.twitter.com/xsyROStYWo

— MLB (@MLB) September 23, 2022

Fun Times In Cleveland Today

The AL Central was a tight race between three teams at the beginning of this month.

The same cannot be said now.

This is Cleveland’s division for the taking.

The Guardians are a team that came out of nowhere to emerge as a contender.

At the beginning of the season, many people expected a tight race at the top between the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins.

Think again.

The Guardians are living proof of why you can never take a big-league team for granted.

This team was way more talented than all of us initially thought.

The emergence of Andres Gimenez, Triston McKenzie, and Steven Kwan have been major factors for Cleveland.

Kwan is a Rookie of the Year candidate, Gimenez was an All-Star, and McKenzie has been a revelation, emerging as a solid No. 2 starter in their rotation next to Bieber.

Again, the race is not over yet, but if things keep going the way they’re going for Cleveland, it will be over very soon.

This article first appeared on The Cold Wire and was syndicated with permission.

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