CLEVELAND — Miguel Cabrera has owned Cleveland’s pitching staff during his career.
The Guardians presented the Detroit slugger with a guitar as a retirement gift before his final game at Progressive Field on Sunday in which he batted cleanup for only the second time this season.
The guitar, honoring Cleveland’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame connection, had the name “Miggy,” plus Cabrera’s picture and his No. 24 on the front. Manny Ramirez and Guardians third baseman José Ramírez helped present the guitar to Cabrera behind home plate. Cabrera held it high in the air and went through a playing motion before heading to Detroit’s dugout.
Cabrera, 40, is retiring at the end of the season. The teams finish the season with three games in Detroit. It’s easy to see why no one connected with the Guardians will be unhappy their days facing Cabrera are almost over.
Cabrera is batting .308 (282-for-917) with 50 homers and 176 RBIs in 248 career games against Cleveland. He’s hitting .297 (145-for-488) with 26 homers and 89 RBIs in 126 games at Progressive Field.
“I’ve lost a lot of sleep due to Miguel Cabrera,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said Sunday. “It’s always uncomfortable knowing he’s lurking there in the lineup. You’re always cognizant when his time at bat is going to come up.”
Cabrera’s final game in Cleveland came the day after Manny Ramirez was inducted into the Guardians’ Hall of Fame.
“We were fortunate to have two of the best right-handed hitters of this generation in the ballpark the last couple of days,” Antonetti said.
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