Fox Sports proves why the Cleveland Guardians are one of the best franchises going

— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) May 4, 2026

It's quite remarkable to see the Guardians competing regularly with the likes of the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, and Houston Astros, three of the bigger spenders in the league. It seems like every other year or so, the Guardians lose a major name to one of those teams, or teams like them. Case in point, the New York Mets acquisition of Francisco Lindor.

More: ESPN names the Cleveland Guardians top 10 prospects for May

The Guardians sent Lindor to the Mets in 2021, and received back INF Andrés Giménez, INF Amed Rosario, RHP Josh Wolf, and OF Isaiah Greene. Yet, since 2016, the Mets are just 791-778 or a winning percentage of just .504. The Mets are one of the most eager spenders in the league, and they've constantly underperformed. In fact, the Mets are currently 12-22 after losing 12 straight. They're currently 4-17 in their last 21, despite all of that money spent.

The Guardians are currently tied for first in the AL Central with an 18-17 record, while they watch some of their best hitting prospects in the last 10 years take the field and excel. Clearly, money isn't everything in the game.

Now it should be noted that the Minnesota Twins, with a record of 767-798 (.490), are the only other AL Central club in the Top 20 on this list at the 17th spot. The Detroit Tigers were 25th, with a record of 704-860 (.450), the Kansas City Royals were 28th with a record of 685-873 (.440), and the Chicago White Sox were 30th with a record of 668-890 (.429). So, clearly not the strongest division in baseball consistently, but each team has had stretches where they were a real threat over that time frame.

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