Guardians second-half storylines to watch, starting with the trade deadline picture

CLEVELAND — For the Guardians, the first half was about exceeding expectations. It was about a new manager making the transition appear seamless as he replaced a future Hall of Famer. It was about a once-thumpless lineup pumping up its home run total. It was about José Ramírez extending his peak, Josh Naylor swinging an angry bat and Steven Kwan flirting with the .400 mark. It was about a bullpen full of unfamiliar faces coming to the rotation’s rescue time and time again.

It was about a team avoiding the letdown everyone was so sure would strike, a long, drawn-out free-fall back to reality for a club few anticipated winning more than 85 games.

GO DEEPER

Three Cleveland Guardians takeaways on the first half of the season

And now, for the Guardians, the second half is about keeping the foot on the accelerator. It’s about a pennant race. The joyous journey through 162 games will reach critical mass and the results will carry more weight.

How much magic does this Guardians group have left?

Will the front office land the necessary additions?

Like many teams, the Guardians need a boost in the starting rotation. It’s not just a matter of finding someone to hand the ball to in, say, Game 3 of the ALCS at Yankee Stadium. They need starting pitching help just to survive the 162-game grind.

Remember the old “Spahn and Sain and pray for rain” bit? The Guardians are similarly short in confidence-instilling options. “Williams and Bibee and maybe Ben Lively” doesn’t have a ring to it. “Gav and Tan and prayer is the plan” doesn’t roll off the tongue.

A lot of the trade deadline scuttlebutt has centered on how difficult it will be for contenders to acquire a difference-maker for their rotation. But once more sellers emerge, there should be enough supply to meet the Guardians’ demands. They oughtn’t be picky. Their rotation ranks last in the majors in WAR. Even if they don’t obtain a front-line starter, snagging someone who can simply chew up innings would be beneficial.

The work for president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti and GM Mike Chernoff doesn’t end there, though. There’s room for another bat. Maybe a reliever, too. The Guardians have the luxury of an abundance of defensive versatility, with Daniel Schneemann, David Fry and Angel Martínez bouncing around the diamond, so they could assimilate virtually any hitter to the fold via trade.

Cleveland’s front office has typically been aggressive when the club soars past expectations for the first four months of a season. They acquired Ubaldo Jiménez in 2011 (though that was more pseudo-contention than this) and Andrew Miller (plus Brandon Guyer and, almost, Jonathan Lucroy) in 2016. The last few years, the club has slogged through the first half, leading to selling in 2021 and 2023 and silence in 2022, despite an eventual surge to the postseason.

This year is different. The Guardians have stood beside the league’s titans since Opening Day. The fan base seems galvanized, with sparkling attendance figures. It seems like a prudent time for the front office to pounce and round out the roster with some upgrades.

Which rookies will prove they belong?

There are, essentially, four everyday players in Cleveland’s lineup. Manager Stephen Vogt never has to hesitate to scribble down the names of Kwan, Ramírez, Josh Naylor and Andrés Giménez. But everything else is up for grabs. Fry has fallen off, calling into question whether he’s better suited for a part-time role. Bo Naylor and Will Brennan have yet to seize daily playing time. Tyler Freeman hasn’t really moved the needle. And then there’s a collection of rookies trying to solidify their standings.

Martínez has thrived, albeit in a tiny sample. Schneemann and Jhonkensy Noel have flashed some helpful traits. Brayan Rocchio has underwhelmed as the regular shortstop. Kyle Manzardo didn’t offer much thump in his first trial. Johnathan Rodriguez has made a couple brief cameos. The Guardians need some of these guys to demonstrate they should be part of the core moving forward.

Can the bullpen maintain its dominance?

One way to compensate for an uncharacteristically lackluster rotation? Boast the league’s most prolific bullpen. What Hunter Gaddis, Cade Smith, Tim Herrin and, of course, Emmanuel Clase have accomplished this season has been remarkable, especially considering the three rookies weren’t tickets for the big-league bullpen until late in spring training. Nick Sandlin, Scott Barlow, Sam Hentges and even Pedro Avila have helped, too.

The question is, can this group maintain this level of production, given how much Vogt has leaned on them? Hentges is sidelined with shoulder inflammation, his second stint on the injured list. The three rookies are new to this, to varying degrees. Fifteen AL relievers have made at least 43 appearances. Five of them pitch for the Guardians.

There was supposed to be depth down below, but injuries have derailed what were shaping up to be promising seasons for Franco Aleman and Nic Enright. Andrew Walters, the organization’s second-round pick last summer, has fought command issues at Triple A. It might behoove the club to add another steady reliever for the home stretch.

The second-half schedule isn’t very forgiving

A trip to Philadelphia is the ultimate litmus test, and the Guardians will experience it right before the July 30 trade deadline. So is a four-game series against the Orioles a few days later. A four-game set over three days in Minneapolis in early August isn’t ideal for a team with starting pitching problems. A road trip against the Brewers and Yankees in mid-August is no treat, either. The Guardians have a beast of a trip to face the Royals, Dodgers and White Sox as they zig-zag across the country in early September. The White Sox, the one soft spot on that 10-day voyage, have more wins against Cleveland than any other team this season.

The Guardians play 13 of their final 16 games at Progressive Field, where they own an MLB-best 30-11 record thus far. That stretch includes consecutive four-game sets against the Rays and Twins, a trip to St. Louis to battle a Cardinals team that could be in the thick of the NL playoff race, a quick visit from the Reds and then a three-game series with the Astros — who have resurrected their season — to end the regular slate.

(Top photo: Julio Aguilar / Getty Images)