CLEVELAND, OH - Following the jolt of excitement from the additions of new pitchers Lucas Giolito, Matt Moore and Reynaldo Lopez, the Cleveland Guardians (65-70) came back to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays (82-53), 3-2, on the backs of shortstop Gabriel Arias and catcher Bo Naylor’s RBI hits in the team’s 7th inning rally.
Facing Rays ace Tyler Glasnow (7-5, 3.17), Guardians hitters were challenged all night, only notching one run in the first six innings on a Kole Calhoun sacrifice fly in the 3rd inning. Glasnow finished pitching seven innings, striking out six, while allowing three earned runs on seven hits.
The Guardians rally got kicked off in the 7th with a single from second baseman Andres Gimenez, followed by the infielder’s 23 stolen base of the season. Outfielder Will Brennan moved Gimenez to third on a sacrifice fly, setting up Arias to tie the game with an RBI single on a line drive to left field. Naylor then brought home Arias on an RBI double deep into right center field.
Guardians pitcher Cal Quantrill made his first since July 5th, throwing six innings, striking out two Rays hitters, and allowing two earned runs on three walks and two hits. Quantrill, 28, was placed on the injured list on July 6th, his second time this season. He had not been placed on the injured list in his career prior to this season.
The Kids Are Alright
For Arias and Naylor, the 2023 season has had its unique challenges for both young hitters.
With Naylor, the catcher has been adjusting to a pitching staff midseason while getting acclimated to the big league level. Arias has dealt with sporadic playing time between different positions, only recently being able to settle into his natural position at shortstop.
As they both have gotten more consistent at-bats and reps, the results are starting to bear fruit for the young hitters. In the last seven games, Arias has been hitting .346 with a .985 OPS, one home run and three RBI. In that same span, Naylor has been hitting .294 with a 1.215 OPS, three home runs and five RBI.
“Arias had some real good swings tonight,” Guardians manager Terry Francona said following the win. “[Tyler Glasnow] has got as good of stuff as you're gonna see, and [Arias] had some really good at-bats.”
For Naylor, it’s not just coming in the batters box, but behind the plate as well.
“I'm definitely getting more comfortable in there, just kind of calming down,” Naylor said after the game. “As of recent, I think I've just really been trying to control the things that I can control, and only focusing on that and it's really helped me settle down on both sides of the game.”
Francona offered praise up for the rookie catcher after the game, “When you're a young catcher, you're getting a lot thrown at you. I heard some of his comments about trying to control what you can control, but that's easier said than done when you're in charge of leading a staff, trying to get hits, and [throwing] people out. There's a lot going on for young catchers.”
Quantrill also commended the young catcher following the game, “It’s a hard job to be a young catcher. Really hard job, that position is asked for more than just about any position in baseball, but I think he's handled it well. [I] thought he called a good game today. I think he learns every time he goes out there, and he could swing the bat. He made an impact on both sides of the ball.”
What’s Next
The Guardians face off against the Rays again tomorrow at 6:10 PM, with left-hander Logan Allen (6-7, 3.61) on the bump for the Guardians and right-hander Zack Littell (3-4, 4.45) on the hill for the Rays.
Guardians notch two runs in the bottom of the seventh to come back and beat the Rays.
