Cleveland's playoff hopes are hanging by a thread and Colorado's season got buried a while ago — Sunday in Denver is mostly about pride, arms, and not much else.
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SUN AUG 23 · 1:10 PM MT
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Guardians
Rockies
Foster Griffin (14-4, 3.18 ERA) gets the ball for Cleveland at 1:10 PM MT on Sunday, and since the Guardians grabbed him from Washington at the trade deadline he's pitched like the All-Star he was — 6 strikeouts and 1 run allowed over 6 innings in his last time out against the Giants. Tomoyuki Sugano goes for Colorado, and the 36-year-old has quietly been one of the better stories on a lost Rockies season, even if his last start — 6 runs allowed over 5 innings against the Dodgers — wasn't part of it.
Cleveland's lineup is without Rhys Hoskins, who landed on the 10-day IL after a 2-run homer against the White Sox, and the bullpen took a hit when Colin Holderman left a game with wrist inflammation. Colorado is thinner still — its rotation has been gutted by season-ending elbow and shoulder procedures, which is a big part of why Sugano and Kyle Freeland have had to shoulder so much of the workload down the stretch.
Neither club is playing for October at this point, but the mood in each dugout is different. Cleveland is still mathematically alive and treating August games like they matter; Colorado is auditioning arms and hoping the back half of 2026 sets up something better for next year.
Cleveland Guardians
Colorado Rockies
Cleveland rolled into this series behind a 9-1 win Saturday, part of a stretch where the Guardians have taken 2 of their last 3 series. Colorado is trying to shake off a 4-game skid that includes a sweep at the hands of the Dodgers — Saturday's opener was just the latest gut punch in front of the home crowd at Coors.
Cleveland Guardians
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Fully healthy — no injuries to report
Colorado Rockies
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Fully healthy — no injuries to report
Whatever's left of this season for both teams, Sunday is about whether Griffin can keep his hot stretch going against a lineup that's lost some thump, and whether the Rockies can find one bright spot to close out the weekend.
