SAN DIEGO -- On an unseasonably cool and cloudy Tuesday in San Diego, the Guardians lost another game in which they were held to three or fewer runs.
Three runs are a demarcation point for the Guards. They are 9-26 when they score three or fewer runs and 22-9 when they score four or more.
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It is a jarring statistic, but it is true for most teams. The Padres, who beat the Guardians, 6-3, Tuesday night at Petco Park are 3-29 when they score three or fewer and 29-5 when they score four or more runs.
What was far more interesting about Cleveland’s 35th loss of the season was its ability to stay close to the Padres despite a rare poor start by rookie Tanner Bibee.
The Padres took a 4-0 lead in the first on a sacrifice fly by Xander Bogaerts and a three-run homer by Gary Sanchez. Josh Bell, who played the second half of last season with the Padres, answered with a leadoff homer in the second inning.
Fernando Tatis made it 5-1 with a two-out homer in the second. Will Brennan scored on Steven Kwan’s ground out in the fifth to make it 5-2.
The Padres answered with an RBI double by Bogaerts in the fifth to make it 6-2. It was Bibee’s last pitch of the night, but the Guardians kept trying to get back into the game.
They made it 6-3 in the sixth on consecutive singles by Jose Ramirez and Josh Naylor and a sacrifice fly by Tyler Freeman.
The Guardians put runners on base in each of the final three innings, but could get no closer.
Manager Terry Francona said the Guardians had some good at-bats, but the early 5-1 deficit was hard to overcome. So was the work of Joe Musgrove, who allowed three runs over six innings.
“He’s a really good veteran major league pitcher,” said Francona. “He’s got the stuff and he knows how to pitch. It’s just a hard way to play when you get down early, but we had some decent at-bats.”
The Guardians have been staging a mini-offensive revival since May 28. It slowed Tuesday as they failed to reach 10 hits for the first time in six games, but that doesn’t mean it’s over.
In their last 15 games, they’ve hit .295 (149 for 505), scored 79 runs (5.3 per game) and collected 160 hits, including 57 for extra bases. They’re 9-6 in those 15 games.
The Guardians’ team batting average has gone from .226 to .242. They’re still ranked 27th in runs and last in homers, but at least they’re showing improvement.
Francona, before the game, was talking about Bell hitting the ball in the air more. His homer to right field was an arching drive and his second in as many games.
“If we can get Bell hot, especially with the way Josie (Ramirez) and Naylor have been swinging the bat, we could get a little bit of a line going there,” said Francona. “That would really be beneficial.”
Ramirez and the two Joshes hit in the three, four and five spots Tuesday night.
- Ramirez singled and scored.
- Naylor went 2 for 4 to extend his career-high hitting streak to 12 games. He’s driven in 16 runs in the streak.
- Bell went 2 for 4 with his sixth homer of the season. Bell is hitting .350 (14 for 40) with three homers and 16 RBI in his last 11 games.
“The last month or so we’ve shown our resiliency,” said Bell. “We go down early, come back late. Even in the last inning (Tuesday) it felt like we were just one hit away.
“It definitely breeds confidence in the clubhouse.”
Bell said it’s essential for the middle of the lineup to produce.
“We’ve seen how good our starting pitchers are, especially when we hand them a lead,” said Bell. “We know how good our bullpen is when we give them more than a one-run lead going into the sixth, seventh an eighth innings.
“So, if we can scratch out some runs early, we’re going to win games. And if I stay hot, it’s just more protection for the guys in front of me.”
The Guardians hit .232 and average 3.9 runs per game in March and April. They hit .233 and averaged 3.4 runs per game in May. In June, they’re hitting .286 and averaging 4.8 runs per game.
“That’s the game,” said Bell, when asked about baseball’s cyclical nature. “You want to feel as good for as long as you can. You try to ride the wave and not try to change anything in your routine. But when you have three or four guys going good at the same time, it breeds confidence in the locker room.”
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