Bieber buckles down birds for 7-2 victory

The first-place Cleveland Guardians wrapped up a 5-1 road trip with a win against the Toronto Blue Jays. As noted by Tom Hamilton just before the Cleveland Clinic Cleveland Guardians Radio Network Post-Game Wrap-Up Show, it is unusual for the youngest team in baseball to perform as the Guardians continue to.

The following are observations regarding the nature of this team that are made by many, but for the sake of generating a run-on sentence AND collecting all of them in one place, allow me to note that this team:

1. Routinely handles road trips, double-headers, postponements, and other scheduling SNAFUs with relative ease;
2. Refuses to quit, balk, or back down against supposedly superior and certainly more experienced teams;
3. Continues to pull Rookies up from the minor leagues and receive real contributions, a trend that continues tomorrow with the debut of Xzavion Curry;

all of which adds up to the most exciting team in Major League Baseball.

(Intermission)

It’s all about the Biebs.

Aces set the tone for the starting rotation. Starters set the tone for the game. That work ethic sets an example for the rest of the team.

You love to see that guy pitch seven innings against a top-tier offense and hold them to two runs. He allowed eight hits and struck out six, issuing no walks. The bullpen silenced the Jays in the final two innings on Bieber’s behalf. Trevor Stephan worked a scoreless eighth with two strikeouts and Emmanuel Clase tossed a blank ninth.

Perceptive reader(s) will notice that the five-run difference in the scoreline does not represent a save situation. Wherefore Clase?!

More on this after the break!

(Second Intermissions are not italicized)

Remember when everybody wanted to trade Amed Rosario?

I do not bring it up to reprimand, upbraid, castigate, eviscerate, ignite a fiery row, and more. I floated the idea a few times.

I simply wish to celebrate the ongoing performance of Amed Rosario, who opened the scoring today with a 422-foot blast to center. Not one to rest on laurels, Rosario finished with three total hits, two RBIs, a walk, and a stolen base.

Meanwhile, Austin Hedges went off. He knocked two hits for two RBIs of his own. He singled home Owen Miller in the second inning and doubled to score Tyler Freeman in the fourth.

Speaking of Owen Miller, he drove in a run of his own in the fifth.

Josh Naylor rounds out the multi-hit performances. His slashline shifted to .274/.324/.485 on the season with two singles.

And now, the moment for which you have all been waiting: why did Emmanuel Clase pitch in a non-save situation? He’d already started warming up. As such—

(signal failure)
(seventeen hours of static)

— Terry Francona allowed him to pitch the ninth even after two insurance runs came around to score.