N&N: Guardians sell out home opener, announce $49/month ticket plan

Mar 21, 2023 - 12:57 PM

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In terms of what’s good for MLB popularity, specifically, there isn’t a much better finals matchup than Japan and USA.

Two of the game’s best players that have been trapped in one of the league’s least competent franchises will finally get a chance to shine on a primetime, international stage tonight when Mike Trout and team USA take on Shohei Ohtani and team Japan.

Shohei and the boys walked off Mexico last night after trailing by as much as three and down 5-4 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning.

That hit ended the WBC for Randy Arozarona, one of the tournament's most entertaining players by far. He and the rest of Mexico’s roster will head back to their respective leagues to wrap up spring training.

With Ohtani’s plan to pitch in relief during the finals, there is a nonzero chance we could see him face Trout with the game on the line in the bottom of the ninth. It’s a long shot, but it’s there.

Guardians 5, Rangers 5

Box Score
Josh Naylor came out to play in yesterday’s 5-5 tie with the Rangers, going 3-for-3 and hitting his second home run of the spring. Evan Gaddis struck out six over 3.2 innings, and Eli Morgan ... also pitched.

Today’s baseball: vs. Dodgers, 4:05 p.m. ET (no broadcast)

Cleveland Guardians news

Cleveland Guardians home opener vs. Seattle Mariners sold out, standing-room only tickets still available | WKYC
There once was a time when Cleveland’s home opener tickets sold out in mere minutes, but that has slowly faded over the years as rising ticket prices have made it difficult for just about anyone to attend. But they did finally sell out yesterday, marking the 29th consecutive sellout for the franchise.

Speaking of those ticket prices ...

Guardians Ballpark Pass | MLB
The Guardians this morning announced a $49-per-month ticket plan that includes standing room only tickets for every home game throughout the regular season. In other words, if you get the plan from April through September, that is $294 for 81 baseball games, including packed weekend games. Not a bad deal at all; something like this was way overdue.

Rockies Option Nolan Jones | MLB Trade Rumors
Not strictly Guardians-related, but Nolan Jones was optioned by the Rockies yesterday. You may remember that the Guardians sent him out west in return for another middle infield prospect, Juan Brito, last November.

While the trade was a bit of a shock at the time, it made sense considering there wasn’t any room for Jones on the Guardians (as there should have been on the Rockies), and they were willing to take a risk by adding a young Brito to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft (which the Rockies didn’t want to do). But now Jones will start the season in Triple-A for the third-straight year.

Injuries & Moves: Toussaint reassigned | MLB
A handful of relievers were assigned to minor-league camp over the weekend along with catcher Bryan Lavastida. The most notable name might be Touki Toussaint, who was sent yesterday. Toussaint is a non-roster invitee to spring training, but according to MLB.com, the Guardians see some things that “they are confident can be tweaked” before they use him as a multi-inning reliever. It sounds like they want him to stick around.

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