The Cleveland Guardians open their 2026 season on the road tonight in Seattle.

Why it matters: Snag an afternoon nap or chug an energy drink after dinner if you expect to stay awake for a game with a first pitch at 10:10pm ET.

The big picture: Despite the third-lowest payroll in the Majors, Cleveland has built a consistent contender — winning back-to-back AL Central titles and two consecutive Manager of the Year awards for Stephen Vogt.

• But the Guards also have the longest World Series drought in baseball, having last won in 1948.

Driving the news: The 2026 roster looks familiar, if slightly younger. The penny-pinching front office made no moves of significance this offseason and is hoping that internal growth will pave the road to success.

Zoom in: Tanner Bibee gets his first Opening Day start and leads a strong rotation that includes Gavin Williams, Slade Cecconi, Joey Cantillo and Parker Messick.

• Stars José Ramírez and Steven Kwan remain the lineup's anchors.
• Veteran Rhys Hoskins, most recently of the Brewers, was ostensibly acquired to boost an offense that ranked among the league's worst last year.

Yes, but: Hoskins hit only 12 home runs with a batting average of .237 for Milwaukee last year.

Between the lines: Cleveland is leaning heavily on a wave of young talent.

• Prospects Chase DeLauter, CJ Kayfus and Kyle Manzardo are expected to take on bigger roles in an anemic offense that scored the fewest runs in baseball last season.

📺 Where we're watching: All over the place, evidently. The four-game series against Seattle will air in multiple locations beyond CleGuardians.TV.

• AppleTV will have the Friday game, while Peacock takes over Sunday night with a more reasonable first pitch at 7:20pm.
• Otherwise, a team spokesperson says to expect the same cable providers from last year to air games this season.

What's next: The home opener is next Friday against the Chicago Cubs.

• The new blue seats at Progressive Field should be fully installed.

Few artists in recent memory have embraced their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nomination as much as New Edition.

The intrigue: Each member of the group — Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, Ronnie DeVoe, Bobby Brown, Johnny Gill and Ralph Tresvant — has feverishly promoted the Rock Hall's Fan Vote on social media.

• The Boston-born R&B act currently leads the annual poll by a solid margin over the likes of Phil Collins, P!NK and Luther Vandross.

What they're saying: "It's one of those bucket list things," Tresvant tells Axios.

• "It's rare that all of the members in a group are still here to witness this happening. It'd be a blessing to stand up there all together for an honor like that."

Reality check: Winning the Fan Vote by no means guarantees induction.

• The top seven vote-getters constitute a single "fan ballot" added to a pool of more than 1,200 voters.

Yes, but: Just the nomination caps an incredible six months for New Edition, a group that dominated the 1980s and became the archetype for the modern boy band.

State of play: Last year, the city of Boston declared Aug. 30 "New Edition Day." Boston renamed a portion of the street in the Roxbury neighborhood, where most of the members grew up, "New Edition Way."

• The group even named its current tour "The New Edition Way." The trek stopped in Cleveland a few days before this year's Rock Hall nominees were revealed.

What's next: The members say they'll continue to promote the Rock Hall nomination and keep their fingers crossed for when the class of 2026 is announced next month.

• "Some things come with patience," Bivins says. "The focus is on us now, and it feels just like it's our time."

🏟️ The Brook Park Planning Commission unanimously approved a preliminary development plan for the new Browns stadium, but asked for additional gameday parking spaces. (Cleveland.com)

🍣 Two new sushi concepts are arriving in Cleveland: Domo Sushi on Lorain Avenue in Ohio City and Sushi by Boū, an Omakase Sushi Bar, at the Ritz-Carlton downtown. (Cleveland Scene)

🏥 The Sisters of Charity Health System this week announced a $3 million funding commitment to a new Behavioral Health Crisis Center whose funding picture has been in flux. (Sisters of Charity)

🎭 Cleveland Public Theatre is embarking on a $12 million renovation in Detroit-Shoreway. (Cleveland.com)

👋 Sam here. The best things I drank this week were a pair of Nepalese lagers from Himalayan Restaurant in Cleveland's Jefferson neighborhood.

State of play: Himalayan advertised on Instagram that it now sells the imported bottled beers, and I made a plan to visit as soon as I had an evening free.

Vibe check: Himalayan is one of my favorite Indian/Nepalese restaurants in town, though the weeknight dine-in atmosphere can sometimes feel like an afterthought, as a large portion of its business is carryout.

• Fear not. The food speaks for itself.

🍺 What I drank: I sampled the available Nepalese options, "Nepal Ice" and "Mustang" — each of which arrived ice cold and disclosed its bubbly, golden character when poured into Himalayan's goblets.

• Each was $5 and featured a borderline-skunky funk that I associate with Stella Artois.
• Standard imported beers, in other words!

Verdict: Alongside Himalayan's decadent sauces and addictive naan — I order the garlic varietal, as a rule — the beers were mostly a novelty.

• But for my money, the novelty is often the point.