Stephen Vogt Opens Up About Guardians’ Playoff Hopes
The Cleveland Guardians’ playoff chances are slipping, but Stephen Vogt insists the team should focus solely on improving itself.
After a strong stretch of six consecutive series wins, Cleveland has stumbled, securing just one victory in their last six games, which has made their playoff pursuit more challenging.
Following a series loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Kansas City Royals have passed the Guardians in the standings, leaving Cleveland 3.0 games behind a wild-card spot. 
Despite the setback, Vogt made it clear after Wednesday’s loss that he’s not concerned with the standings or what other teams are doing. His focus is entirely on his own squad.
“I don’t look at the scoreboard for anybody else. I just know that we need to keep winning games,” said Vogt. “We need to get back on track. These last two series have been tough—games we should have won but didn’t. We need to improve offensively, continue getting better defensively, and pitch better. We control our own destiny; we just need to keep winning.”
Vogt’s mindset is spot on—the Guardians need to concentrate on their own game, not on the performance of other teams. To make it to the postseason, Cleveland must address clear weaknesses.
One key area Vogt highlights is the team’s offensive production. In the past week, the Guardians have posted a poor slash line of .203/.277/.293 with an OPS of .570—far from the numbers of a playoff contender.
Still, Vogt’s point stands: the Guardians control their future.
Cleveland’s main competition for the wild card spot includes the Royals, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, and New York Yankees. The Guardians still have series left against all of these teams except the Yankees, though Cleveland currently holds the tiebreaker over New York.
As Vogt stresses, the team must start improving if it wants to stay in playoff contention. Despite their recent struggles, Cleveland still has a chance to get back on track.
No Comment! Be the first one.