Guardians' camaraderie on display in hot start

This story was excerpted from Mandy Bell’s Guardians Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CLEVELAND -- Andrés Giménez sat down at the dais in the Guardians’ media room just after Monday’s victory over the White Sox. He only had a few minutes in the clubhouse before he had to leave to field questions from local reporters. He didn’t hide his feelings about having to be across the hall from his teammates at that time.

“I didn’t want to come here,” Giménez said.

He wasn’t mad about answering questions. He was upset being away from his teammates as they celebrated their eighth win through the first 10 games.

That’s the vibe that’s been created in this clubhouse. Guys are itching to be in that room together after a win. Tyler Beede is consulting with Triston McKenzie and Austin Hedges about who should get the WWE championship belt. Music is blaring. Guys are screaming. Photos are being taken with the belt around the waist of the recipient. It’s like a college party after every win.

“You feel the vibe. You feel the energy and we trust each other,” Giménez said. “I feel like now is the time where we grew up together, we spent the last three years together, so now we know each other pretty well.”

The 2022 season was expected to be a rebuilding year as the Guardians turned to younger players in their organization. Instead, the club embraced its youth and let the fun it was having guide it to the American League Division Series. Hedges was the perfect leader for the group, providing veteran perspective while also being the loudest, funniest and loosest guy in the room. Then, he was gone in 2023.

The clubhouse went quiet. So did the offense. The breaks the Guardians caught in 2022 were going in the favor of their opponents. Injuries plagued the rotation, and the club finished in third place in the AL Central. Something had to change.

The Guardians didn’t add a big bat. They didn’t make many moves over the winter. But they did bring back Hedges, who has already brought the energy back into the room. Suddenly, the clubhouse not only has life again, but it has a vibe unlike any group that’s come through the organization over the last few years.

Guys are always playing card games or chess. They hop in on media scrums to try to make whichever teammate is being interviewed laugh on camera. They scream in the background while others are talking to reporters to try to get them to trip on their words. The WWE belt is just icing on the cake.

This team will have to overcome a lot to be contenders again in 2024. Shane Bieber will miss the whole season due to Tommy John surgery. The lineup still doesn’t have big sluggers to help put multiple runs on the board with one swing of the bat consistently. Small ball and scrappiness will be their main traits. But when there’s camaraderie like there is right now, it can make anyone believe that anything is possible.

“These guys love each other,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “This is a core that's been together for a number of years. Nothing's changed and that's been the message. I know there's been a lot of change around here, but you guys don't change who you are. Keep going and they love each other.

“Getting Hedgey back in this clubhouse, he keeps us all laughing. He keeps us all connected. He and the other leaders in that clubhouse are emerging and these guys are just having fun right now.”