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Playoff baseball in Cleveland: Guardians clinch playoff spot in 2024 postseason

ryan lewis, akron beacon journal
·2 min read

CLEVELAND — There will be playoff baseball in Cleveland.

The Guardians clinched a playoff spot with Thursday's win over the Minnesota Twins, improving their record to 89-65. They're the third team to secure a playoff berth, along with the New York Yankees and Milwaukee Brewers last night.

After a one-year hiatus, the Guardians will play into October. They also made the playoffs in 2022 (92 wins) and in 2020 during the shortened season due to COVID.

Sep 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez, middle, celebrates with teammates after the Guardians beat the Minnesota Twins and clinched a playoff berth at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
Sep 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez, middle, celebrates with teammates after the Guardians beat the Minnesota Twins and clinched a playoff berth at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Cleveland Guardians standings in American League; Playoff schedule

The next task is for the Guardians to wrap up the American League Central. They now have a 6.5-game lead over the Kansas City Royals, and their magic number is down to three, meaning they could clinch the division as early as Saturday in St. Louis.

The final step will be to lock up one of the top two seeds in the American League, which would allow them to skip the initial Wild Card round. The Yankees (89-63) would own the No. 1 seed if the playoffs started today. The Guardians are currently in line to finish as the No. 2 seed. The Houston Astros (82-70) are trying to catch the Guardians for that No. 2 spot.

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As for the Wild Card race, the Baltimore Orioles are in line for first spot at 84-68. There is then a razor-thin race for the last two spots between three AL Central teams, the Royals (82-71), the Twins (80-73) and the Detroit Tigers (80-73). The Tigers have recently been the hottest team in baseball.

If the Guardians do secure one of the two top seeds in the AL, their first playoff game would be slated for Oct. 5 at Progressive Field. If they are the No. 2 seed, they'd play the winner between the No. 3 seed and the No. 6 seed.

Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Threads at @ByRyanLewis.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians clinch playoff spot in 2024 MLB postseason