MINNEAPOLIS — It’s been a familiar scene in recent weeks: a narrow loss that felt preventable, followed by a postgame huddle in the corner of the clubhouse with veteran catcher Austin Hedges steering a couple teammates out of a mental mire.On Tuesday night, Hedges, David Fry and Rhys Hoskins gathered to reflect on the team’s hitting approach. On Wednesday, Hedges spent a half hour encouraging Slade Cecconi after a rough outing.The Guardians are 11-19 in their last 30 games. They’re staring up at the White Sox in the AL Central, the Twins have nearly caught them in the standings and the Tigers are attempting to stage a comeback that convinces their front office to keep Tarik Skubal and company at the trade deadline.Hedges offered his customarily unwavering confidence, acknowledging the team’s rough stretch and proclaiming: “By the end of September, it will be worth it.”“Winning is great,” Hedges said, “because losing sucks, because sucking sucks. There is no glory without sucking and suffering and overcoming things. We’re being tested right now.”With that, we move to your questions (which have been lightly edited for clarity):In light of the almost certain labor stoppage ahead, if you were Chris Antonetti, how would you approach this trade deadline? — Dave B.Two factors would guide my thinking. One, even though the Guardians have been taking on water in recent weeks, the American League is inviting any and all teams to make a run, and it’s not like Cleveland has anything to sell or can get any younger.Two, the nucleus is already in place with Travis Bazzana, Chase DeLauter, José Ramírez and a formidable rotation. Those two tenets would have me primarily targeting players with multiple years of control, and pretty aggressively. If an upgrade or two helps the Guardians in 2026, awesome. If not, the core should have this team competing the next few years. Think of this like 2011, when Cleveland surprised a lot of people by trading for Ubaldo Jiménez. That trade didn’t pay dividends until 2013.Travis Bazzana is the Guardians second baseman now. But will he stay there? (Jason Miller / Getty Images)Is Travis Bazzana’s defense going to push him to the outfield? — Andrew R.Eventually, maybe. It’s a question scouts have asked. But it’s a conversation for another season. The Guardians aren’t going to add that to his plate anytime soon, and they’ll give him ample opportunity to improve his footwork, arm or whatever else needs polishing. At 29, Luis Arraez turned himself into a more-than-competent defensive second baseman this year, so it can be done.Bazzana’s work ethic and understanding of his toolset should help. Former MLB infielder Darwin Barney was on the Oregon State staff during Bazzana’s college tenure and told me: “There were some things he and I had to tackle when it came to the defensive side. The guy was willing to grind. When he recognizes a weakness, he attacks it.”