Civale tagged, baby Guardians go home in latest October exit
By MIKE FITZPATRICK
AP Baseball Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — In the end, the Cleveland Guardians ran out of comebacks. And the youngest team in the majors was unable to halt baseball’s oldest championship drought. Unwilling to start ace pitcher Shane Bieber on short rest, the Guardians fell behind immediately when Aaron Civale flopped and they never recovered during a 5-1 loss to the New York Yankees in Game 5 of their American League playoff. New York took the Division Series three games to two and advanced to face Houston in an ALCS clash of titans. Cleveland went home for the winter with plenty to be proud of — plus the familiar pain of October heartbreak after losing its 11th consecutive postseason elimination game, a major league record.