​Before Sunday, Chase DeLauter hadn’t faced live, in-game pitching in just over two weeks. His last at-bat before landing on the injured list was a base hit off Tarik Skubal on Saturday, June 13. Leading up to the Guardians’ decision to activate DeLauter off the IL, questions swirled about whether he needed a rehab assignment to regain timing or if Cleveland was rushing him back. Yet the Guardians urgently needed a offensive spark, and DeLauter delivered in his first game, even serving as the late-game hero in Cleveland’s 5-4 win over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday.
Cleveland created multiple scoring chances throughout the night but had trouble delivering the big hit to break the game open. The Guardians finally broke through in a pivotal moment when Brayan Rocchio singled and Cooper Ingle walked to start the inning with no outs. DeLauter then came to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded, delivering a perfectly placed ground ball to second base, through the infield, and into the outfield, scoring Ingle and Daniel Schneemann to tie the game at four. That hit set the stage for Rhys Hoskins, who put Cleveland ahead with a two-run double. “Obviously, we’ve missed Chase, just like the other guys, but for him to come up in that clutch moment, it was pretty cool, and it looked like he hadn’t missed a beat. Great at-bats all day,” Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said.
From a records and potential playoff perspective, the win mattered greatly for the Guardians. It completed a series victory over the Mariners and could prove crucial if the two teams end up near each other in the standings at season’s end. More than anything, the victory provided a significant moral lift for Cleveland, especially after losing Jose Ramirez and facing self-inflicted adversity. Vogt called it “as big a win as we’ve had all year.”
Now Cleveland looks to build on Sunday’s momentum and the series win as they move forward.