Young, hungry, scrappy: Cleveland Guardians, Cavaliers building with the same blueprint

CLEVELAND — Young. Hungry. Scrappy. Fights to the finish.

In Cleveland, that team description is becoming increasingly familiar.

One would swear Guardians manager Terry Francona has been listening intently to Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff, even though Francona’s health issues over the past two years have largely prevented him from slipping into his seat behind the bench at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

Those characteristics may not translate into immediate success, especially when injuries enter the equation.

The Cavs’ lineup for the 2021-22 season opener at Memphis featured five starters age 24. Their playoff chances were scuttled by All-Star center Jarrett Allen’s fractured finger, but they still made the play-in tournament and their 22-win improvement was the second-best in franchise history.

The Guardians are nearly a year younger than the average age of MLB’s Triple-A teams. Their rotation has not lived up to expectations, likely in part because of a shortened spring training and routines altered by seven postponements.

But when it comes to a never-say-die attitude, the two teams are remarkably similar.

The Cavs had a flair for the dramatic, rallying from 10 or more points down in 12 of their 44 victories. Twenty-two of their wins were decided by 10 points or less.

The Guardians have six come-from-behind wins and one walk-off among their 18 victories. The highlight came at Chicago on May 9, when Josh Naylor recorded eight RBIs after the eighth inning against the White Sox. Down by four runs with two outs in the top of the ninth, Naylor delivered a grand slam. Then, in the 11th, he bashed a three-run home run for a 12-9 victory.

But even a 12-8 loss at Minnesota on May 13 illustrated their determined attitude. Trailing 11-2 after five innings, the Guardians put two runs on the board in the sixth, seventh and ninth.

“We’re not that far into the season and we’ve had some very, very exciting games and some big comebacks where we feel we’re never out of the fight,” right-hander Shane Bieber said Friday. “Ultimately that’s the confidence, the preparation, the work ethic of the hitters. We’re taking BP right now and you can see how seriously everybody takes it.

“I think it’s special. I think we’ve got a really fun, really cool special group here. We’re really confident in the clubhouse, we feel good and we love to come to work every day and put in what we need to put in to get out what we need to get out.”

President of Baseball Operations Chris Antonetti said one of the “hallmarks” of the Guardians is “consistent quality at-bats throughout the order.” But their grit seems as much mental as physical.

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But where does that come from? Francona peeking over Bickerstaff’s shoulder?

“I think it starts with Tito,” Guardians reliever Bryan Shaw said Saturday of Francona, hired in 2013. “I think it starts with the front office, starts with Tito, with the entire coaching staff. They’ve done a good job since my first year in 2013 making sure guys understood we’re never out of a game, always fight to the end, never give up, have that attitude, have that mentality that fight until the last out is made of the game.

“More times than not you’re going to come out on the winning end if you have that thought process. It starts there. And then I think that they try to instill that in the guys as they’re coming up in the minors.”

First-year hitting coach Chris Valaika said the Guardians’ determination that has resulted in their clutch hitting was born in Goodyear, Arizona.

“We've talked from spring about playing 27 outs,” Valaika said Friday. “We're going to have competitive at-bats from the start to the finish. So it's nothing that is out of the ordinary for our guys. Some of those at-bats have shown that we don't quit late in games, regardless of the score.

“I think everybody has produced in the lineup. It's not just the top half trying to get them back around and get them up. I think the bottom of our lineup, middle of our lineup has had that success.”

It doesn't hurt that Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez's 43 RBIs led the majors entering Wednesday. It doesn't hurt that Naylor was hitting .556 with runners in scoring position through Tuesday. It doesn't hurt that 24-year-old rookie center fielder Steven Kwan exploded out of the gate with a .354 average in April or that 25-year-old utility man Owen Miller was hitting .282 through his first 33 games.

Bench coach DeMarlo Hale, the acting manager on Friday while Francona underwent a minor medical procedure, said playing until there are 27 outs is not all Valaika has been emphasizing.

“I think Val and the hitting department kind of preach some things — ‘Know who you are. What are we capable of doing? What can you do very well from an offensive thought?’” Hale said. “I think these guys are starting to understand, ‘I need to make contact. I need to get on base where I can steal bases, I can create havoc. Yeah, I might hit three or four home runs, but I’m not expected to hit 20, 25, 30.’

“I think there’s a learning curve and understanding who they are. They’re in a good place.”

Know who they are and how they can create havoc. Now there’s an approach the young Cavs can borrow.

Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MRidenourABJ.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians, Cavaliers show similar fighting spirit