Perspective

 Short post tonight following the loss to Minnesota.  Four points:

• I predicted the Guardians to go 91-71 this season and layed out in a post this winter how I thought each series would go.  Entering the Minnesota series I had the Guardians being 16-15.  They were 14-17, so not that much different.  In the Minnesota series I had them going 2-1 so we are still within reach of them being 16-18 and only two games behind the record I predicted, one that was supposed to lead to a 91-71 record.
• As I have said before, I am a lifelong Cleveland baseball fan, a diehard, really.  But I lived my entire working career in St. Louis and married and became a Cardinals fan.  Part of the reason, I guess, that I am more calm about the Guardians current situation is because, as I get older, I am less concerned about the day-to-day of the season compared to the overall result.  The other part of the reason is looking at the Cardinals season unfold.  10-23 for a proud franchise with two perennial all-stars and a bunch of other good players, a record only worse than the teams in baseball TRYING to have the worst record this year.  Basically all the lost from last year's playoff team were icons but long in the tooth veterans Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina.  That should, in and of itself, not be the reason for what may end up being the worst start, by far, in this proud franchise's history.  When I start to bemoan how the Guardians are doing I think about the Cardinals and how it could be a lot worse.  
• If someone had told me that Battenfield was up in the beginning of May and no hit  the FIRST PLACE Minnesota Twins for 5 2/3 and gave us 7 innings of 2-hit, 2-run baseball with 7 Ks and 0 BB, I would have taken it.  Battenfield has been solid so far and for a guy not listed in most people's top 30 Guardians prospects this winter, I think most fans would have taken what he has given us so far and been really happy with it.
• Interestingly, looking back on the comments about how Dolan and others were thinking the team might struggle LAST year, those comments really describe how this year's team is performing.   This team should be hitting better than it is and I think it will.  We don't have Ernie Clement, we don't have Owen Miller, we don't have Austin Hedges and Myles Straw is looking more like the Myles Straw of 2021 than the 2022 version.  We should hit better and I think we will.  We just need to keep it together until we get all the cylinders firing in the proper order.