CLEVELAND — Ben Lively looks to quarterback the Guardians to a win against the Tampa Bay Rays Sunday afternoon at Progressive Field.
Lively has given the Guardians a tremendous return on investment this season, though he has skidded a bit to a 5.50 ERA since the beginning of August .
Steven Kwan is again out of the lineup as he nurses a sore back.
Check back here for live score updates, highlights and analysis from Sunday's game.
Emmanuel Clase recorded his 45th save of the season, which is his career high, and the Guardians have beaten the Rays 2-0 to split the four-game series.
Cade Smith and Tim Herrin each threw a scoreless inning in relief, and Hunter Gaddis will take the eighth inning with the Guardians holding onto a 2-0 lead.
Ben Lively has been effective, but the Guardians are still going with a bit of a quicker hook as the Rays lineup comes up for the third time.
Lively has been taken out at 59 pitches in favor of Cade Smith after the Rays put a couple of runners on with nobody out to open the sixth. Smith worked quickly, needing only 12 pitches to record three outs (two via strikeout) to end the inning with the Guardians still up 2-0.
Jose Ramirez won't get credit for an RBI, but he probably should.
With Ramirez on first and Angel Martinez on third, Ramirez took off for second base. He was thrown out, but it allowed Martinez to easily score to give the Guardians a 2-0 lead in the fifth.
The Guardians did manage to break through in the second via Brayan Rocchio's bloop single into right field with the infield drawn in, giving Cleveland a 1-0 lead.
Why is Jose Ramirez wearing No. 21 today?
Jose Ramirez and a few others players are wearing No. 21 in honor of Roberto Clemente Day, which is Sunday around the league.
The Guardians loaded the bases in the first inning but still came up empty.
Angel Martinez led off the inning with a walk, Jose Ramirez singled and Josh Naylor walked to load the bases with one out.
But Lane Thomas and Will Brennan were both struck out by Rays starter Taj Bradley to end the inning without any damage.
Below is some pregame information
The Guardians (85-64) entered Sunday's slate of games with a 3-game lead over the Kansas City Royals (82-67). The Twins have fallen behind and are now in a 6.5-game hole in the AL Central.
The Twins' lead over the Detroit Tigers for the final Wild Card spot has also shrunk to 2 games.
Angel Martinez could be trusted with leadoff spot with Steven Kwan injury sidelining All-Star left fielder
Angel Martinez was recalled prior to Saturday's game and could be trusted with the leadoff responsibilities as long as Steven Kwan is out with back soreness.
Guardians magic number
The Guardians entered Friday with a magic number to clinch a playoff spot at five and a magic number to win the division at 11.
The magic number will lower every time the Guardians win or every time the second-place team in those scenarios loses.
Lane Thomas heating up with Guardians
With his dad's help as a former race car driver, Lane Thomas is finding his way with the Guardians .
Sam Hentges to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery
Sam Hentges' 2024 season is finished, and his entire 2025 season is also in jeopardy .
Jose Ramirez has 30/30 season in 2024
Jose Ramirez became the first Cleveland hitter in franchise history with multiple 30/30 seasons.
MGK tossed the ceremonial first pitch, but he did so in an interesting manner that was anything but traditional .
Jhonkensy Noel's renewed approach on putting the ball in play has led to breakout 2024 season
Jhonkensy knows he has the power. It took a new focus on contact and mobility to lead to his great rookie season thus far.
Guardians name CC Sabathia to team Hall-of-Fame
CC Sabathia is now in the Guardians' Hall-of-Fame, and he offered a two-part message to Cleveland fans .
Guardians No. 1 overall draft pick Travis Bazzana meets Jose Ramirez, wants to grow the game in Australia
It all finally sank in for Travis Bazzana , the top overall draft pick in the draft, when he stepped onto the field at Progressive Field and met Jose Ramirez and others.
Major League Baseball released the 2025 schedules .
2024 National Sports Card Convention comes to Cleveland
The National Sports Card Convention was in Cleveland recently. We broke down how we'd spend $100 , ranked the most mind-blowing items we could find and listed the top collectibles for under $50 .
Today's game will be televised on Bally Sports. It'll be broadcast on the radio by WTAM (1100-AM) and WMMS (100.7-FM).
The Guardians begin an eight-game homestand Thursday at Progressive Field that will feature four-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays and then the Minnesota Twins.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians vs. Tampa Bay Rays recap; Guards blank Rays in win
Local News
Comments / 0