What a great season for out upstart Guardians, winning their division, winning a playoff round and taking the Yankees to a five game series, before falling last night.

This area loves this team and we should because they are everything that is right about baseball in general, not just MLB. There are few teams that play the game the right way, and they do. They play the game the way you and I were taught in little league. Play hard, run out ground balls, play with passion and respect the game in general.  Plus, this team is representative of its fans. Hard working, under-dogged in perception, and a well kept secret like our stadium, city and area in general.  They play the game the way we all wish every team in every pro sport would.

Losing to the Yankees is never fun for anyone, for many reasons.  The number one reason is the Yankees are everything that is bad about baseball and MLB.  Being fair the them, they do play by the current rules, which are virtually none, so it's not all their fault.  But they simply buy players with a ridiculous never ending payroll, and hoard great players for themselves and keeping them off other teams. They have a all-star roster on the bench and on the injured list too.  It's a bad system, and they are not the only team that does this.  The Dodgers and Mets do the same thing and a few others.  Those two teams are home and the Yankees will soon be as the Astros will beat the Yankees, but that's hard to swallow too.  The Astros spent years NOT playing by the literal rules of the game.

I have stated this a ton of times. The Yankees are probably the worst run team in MLB, as where the Guardians are probably the best.  All that money, with every single advantage imaginable, and the media with it's junior high crush on them, you would think they should win the World Series every year.  But they don't.  If they had our front office and manager, they might.  It's pretty easy, and doesn't take mental giants to simply write checks that are bigger than other teams when there is no bottom to the money well.

The Guardians/Indians this century have 5 Cy Young winners, been to the World Series, have won numerous division titles, playoff series, and have the best manager in the game.  They have won about as many games as any team in the American League over that same time, and have made easily the savviest trades and drafts in the entire league.  All with NO money, no media love, and in small market.  Simply incredible.  The front office of this franchise and the Tampa team too, are true baseball savants, and know how to be exceptionally competitive every year in a system that is rigged against them.  Should be noted in fairness, the system is rigged against about 25 other teams as well, so it's not just us.

But that's the current state of MLB.  The Guardians were the last really great "story" of the playoffs this year with their youth, payroll, and style of play.  Now we have the Yankees, the Astros, Phillies and Padres.  HO-Hum. And I think much of the nation will feel the same way.

Great season Guards, see you next spring!