2 former Guardians start season as heroes for Blue Jays
Cleveland's past players are shining elsewhere.
2 former Guardians start season as heroes for Blue Jays originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . It's often a thing cited by Cleveland sports fans, that their players seem to perform better when they go elsewhere.
The Toronto Blue Jays sure have gone after former Guardians, which certainly has to be somewhat by design given Mark Shapiro's Cleveland past and Toronto present in the front office. And to start the 2026 MLB season, it's been a great thing for the Blue Jays. On Friday night, Andres Gimenez delivered the walk-off hit to help Toronto start the season 1-0.
On Saturday night, it was Ernie Clement with a walk-off hit of his own to make the Blue Jays 2-0. Both were previously players for Cleveland. MORE: Giancarlo Stanton approaching Hall of Fame milestone Gimenez was the more noted Guardians player, a multi-year regular.
Clement was a fourth-round draft pick by Cleveland out of Virginia, but couldn't stick there, or with the Athletics , before latching on with the Blue Jays. Now, Gimenez starts at shortstop with Clement at second base for the reigning American League champions. They're not alone, either, with the likes of Shane Bieber and Myles Straw also a part of Toronto's roster.