Cleveland Guardians World Series Odds: Are The Guardians Worth A Look?

New Name, Same Rotation

Cleveland may have a new nickname, but they still feature one of the best and most undervalued pitching rotations in all of baseball. Last year, the rotation dealt with a plethora of injuries, but the team still had some bright spots, especially with the emergence of Cal Quantrill. Quantrill finished the year 8-3 with a very respectable 2.89 Earned Run Average (ERA) in 149 and two thirds innings pitched. He's certainly a starteing rotation caliber pitcher and it's time people put some respect on that.

Shane Bieber is expected to return at full health to lead the staff, and Zach Plesac and Aaron Civale line up behind him.

Bieber posted an all-star caliber season through the first portion of 2021 before injuries ultimately derailed his year. Nonetheless, Terry Francona and company will be happy to welcome their ace back.

The underlying numbers tend not to favor Plesac.

However, he has displayed success over the past couple of years and has proven the ability to work deep into games. He may not be a budding ace, but Plesac makes for a capable number two or three option.

Civale is a crafty pitcher. He works the corners well and could be in for his best campaign yet in 2022.

The aforementioned Quantrill pitched his way into the all-star discussion last season. He was Cleveland’s best starting pitcher down the stretch and will be an important piece of the puzzle in 2022.

The wild card is Triston McKenzie. McKenzie showed flashes of brilliance last season. But he also struggled mightily at times.

But we have seen young pitchers labor at times early in their careers before things finally click. Perhaps this will be the season that everything comes together for the Guardians’ former No.1 overall prospect.

Bats Need to Step Up

Other than Jose Ramirez, this is a batting order with plenty of questions. Franmil Reyes is the next most consistent hitter, but he dealt with some injury concerns in 2021. If the “Franimal” can stay healthy in 2022, he could be in line for a 40-plus homer campaign.

I am most intrigued to see how first baseman Bobby Bradley performs. Br adley has all of the power potential in the world and could be a nice protection option in the lineup behind Ramirez and Reyes. However, strikeout issues have plagued him throughout his professional career.

If Bradley can turn a few of those strikeouts into home runs, he is another guy capable of blasting 40-plus homers.

The rest of the lineup will feature decent options such as Amed Rosario and Josh Naylor. The emergence of current top prospect Nolan Jones could provide Cleveland with another capable bat as well.

Are the Guardians Worth a Look?

Winning the division outright will be difficult even if everything goes right for the Guardians this season, the Guardians at +950 to win the division seems like a donation at best. The Chicago White Sox have a very deep and talented team and are the rightful favorites to win the AL Central. Meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers have loaded up on talent to complement their young pitching rotation, and they could be a problem for Cleveland as well.

But it is worth noting the Guardians hung around in the division with Chicago last year through the first part of the season while the rotation was healthy.

When the rotation is healthy, the Guardians are a good team. However, with World Series odds at +7000 I will reiterate, it seems like a donation at best.

And we did not even discuss the strong bullpen yet, which features breakout star Emmanuel Clase and his 100 MPH cutter.

The lineup is not going to scare anybody, but Cleveland could pitch their way into a Wild Card spot in 2022.

And all you need to do is make the playoffs and then catch fire at the right time to win the World Series. Just ask the 2019 World Series winning Washington Nationals who snuck in as a Wild Card team and went on to defeat the mighty Houston Astros in the Fall Classic.

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