The Cleveland Guardians put on a show for the sold-out crowd of 33,548 fans as they shutout the Detroit Tigers 7-0 on Saturday in the first postseason game in the American League Division Series.
It was a day packed with storylines for the Cleveland Guardians. A young team, with a brand new manager, Stephen Vogt, playing their rivals from just 90 miles away. The win occurred just a day after learning Terry "Tito" Francona, the Guardians' previous skipper, and the manager many have called the greatest in team history, was taking the job with their rivals in Cincinnati.
Longtime fan, Chris Taylor, came to the game with his cousin. For him, the matchup with Detroit was front of mind.
“The fans traveling back and forth, you get to see a lot of people that you’ve seen before,” said Taylor. “It’s so fun to compete against Detroit, to beat Detroit.”
Detroit fans also came out in abundance, so much so that positive moments in the game for the Tigers came with a ferocious cheer from a sizable out-of-town contingent, usually followed by a swell of boos from the home crowd.
At least, the cheers were ferocious at first.
With nobody out and still in the first inning, the Guardians went on a romp, punctuated by a three-run homer by new Guardians addition, outfielder Lane Thomas. With the lead at 5-0 after the first inning, the roars of Tigers faithful became somewhat less audible. The Guardians then extended the lead to 7-0 which they held for the rest of the game.
Ryan Jones came in from Detroit with his son, Ryan Jr., to see their hometown team take on the rival Guardians.
“I like seeing them play the Guardians. You know the Guardians have been a thorn in our butt for years,” said Jones.
There was plenty of chatter and interaction between the Guardians fans and the Tigers fans, who cut a vibrant ribbon of orange color in a crowd of red and blue. But by all accounts, it remained a positive atmosphere with little real friction.
“It's been good natured fun. Everybody's been giving us a hard time. Obviously, the way the game started off, it's kind of rough,” said Jones. “Well, for us anyway.”
Both teams came into the game with momentum and a scrappy demeanor that has endeared them to their respective home crowds. For the Guardians, one of the main strengths of the year was the performance of their bullpen, which put them atop the Central Division with dominating pitching. Meanwhile, the Tigers rode a wave of momentum through the second half of August and September, winning games and storming back into the wildcard race to make the postseason, and then eliminate the Houston Astros to set a date in Cleveland.
Cleveland fans like Taylor were also freshly dealing with Francona's move to the Cincinnati Reds. Francona stepped down from the Guardians after last season, citing health concerns.
“We just got the news yesterday that he was going down to Cincinnati. And that's heartbreaking because we love Tito for what he did for the Guardians,” said Taylor.
Taylor saved his highest praise for Vogt.
“It's just everything he's done for them this year, they look like they're playing for a guy that they love, you know?” said Taylor. “That's so big in professional sports. You don't see that that much.”
The Guardians will face the Tigers in Game 2 of the ALDS on Monday afternoon at Progressive Field. The series is a best of five games, and will go to Detroit for a possibly series-ending Game 3, on Wednesday, Oct. 9.
