Field Level Media
Sep 8, 2019
Francisco Lindor and Carlos Santana each homered and Mike Clevinger extended his winning streak to 10 games as the Cleveland Indians beat the Minnesota Twins 5-2 in the rubber game of their three-game series on Sunday in Minneapolis.
Lindor also doubled and stole a base, Jason Kipnis went 3-for-4 with a run scored and Franmil Reyes had two hits and two RBIs for Cleveland, which closed to within 5 1/2 games of the American League Central-leading Twins. The teams have a three-game series remaining next weekend in Cleveland.
Clevinger (11-2) has not lost in his last 13 starts, since he was beaten June 28 at Baltimore. He allowed two runs and four hits over 6 1/3 innings, striking out seven and walking two. Brad Hand pitched a scoreless ninth for his 34th save.
Mitch Garver homered for Minnesota, and rookie LaMonte Wade Jr. reached base four times with an RBI single, two walks and a hit by pitch. Opener Randy Dobnak (0-1) suffered the loss, allowing two runs on three hits in two innings.
Cleveland took a 2-0 lead in the second inning when Yasiel Puig led off with a walk and went to third on a double by Kipnis. Reyes followed with a two-run ground single to center.
After Santana made it 3-0 in the third with his 33rd home run of the season, Minnesota cut it to 3-1 in the fourth on Garver's 29th homer of the season and third in two games, a 410-foot shot into the bullpen in left-center.
Lindor hit his 29th home run of the season into the second deck in left to lead off the firth and increase Cleveland's lead to 4-1. The Indians tacked on another run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by Oscar Mercado, driving in Yu Chang, who had walked and advanced to third on a double by Lindor.
The Twins closed to 5-2 in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI single by Wade, his first major league hit, driving in Luis Arraez, who had singled and advanced to third on a double off the wall in right-center by Ehire Adrianza. Minnesota loaded the bases when Jonathan Schoop walked, but reliever Nick Wittgren got out of the jam with back-to-back strikeouts of pinch hitter C.J. Cron and Garver.
Minnesota outfielder Max Kepler left the game after popping out in the first inning with upper-chest discomfort and was listed as day-to-day.
--Field Level Media