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Cleveland Guardians vs. Minnesota Twins recap; Will Brennan hits walk-off homer
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- Cleveland Guardians vs. Minnesota Twins recap; Will Brennan hits walk-off homer
CLEVELAND — The Guardians go for a series sweep of the division rival Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field Sunday afternoon.
The Guardians (29-17) enter the day 4-0 against the Twins this season, which has mostly been the difference in the American League Central race thus far, as Cleveland remains 4.5 games ahead of Minnesota. The Kansas City Royals enter the day 1.5 games behind the Guardians.
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Cleveland is coming off of a 16-hit nigh t in Saturday's 11-4 win and facing a Twins lineup that has been stuck in a rut.
Check back here for live score updates, analysis and highlights throughout the game, which has a 1:40 p.m. first pitch.
May 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians center fielder Tyler Freeman (2) celebrates after scoring during the second inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Will Brennan walk-off home run wins it for Guardians over Twins
That was the weirdest ninth inning of all time, and somehow it ends with Will Brennan launching a walk-off home run that just cleared the wall in right field.
With two outs in the ninth and Andres Gimenez on first base, a ball skipped back to the backstop, and Gimenez advanced to second. He rounded third but stopped and fell midway between the bases and was caught in a pickle. Gimenez dove back to second base as the throw came in, and he was called out, but a review overturned the call to keep the inning alive.
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Josh Naylor was intentionally walked, and Will Brennan hit the game winner. This was truly one of the weirdest endings to a game you'll sever see.
The Guardians have won it 5-2 and swept the Twins — somehow.
Twins tie Guardians with two outs in the ninth in the weirdest way possible
The Twins have tied the Guardians in what has been almost an unthinkably weird ninth inning. Perhaps the better way to say it is that the Guardians have committed three huge gaffes to somehow keep the game from ending.
With two outs and a runner on first, Willi Castro lined a ball back up the middle, which was fielded by Brayan Rocchio . Instead of simply throwing to first to end the game, Rocchio tried to race Byron Buxton to second base. Buxton beat him there in a bang-bang play to extend the game and keep the Twins alive.
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Alex Kirilloff then grounded a ball to first baseman Josh Naylor, who routinely flipped it to Emmanuel Clase . The game should have been over a second time, but Clase dropped the ball.
Naylor picked it up, and the Guardians appeared to have Buxton caught in a pickle between third base and home plate, something that would have erased the error's impact. But instead of throwing ahead of the runner, Naylor threw to third base, allowing Buxton to score.
Somehow, the Guardians should have recorded five outs in that inning but still only had two.
If you're a parent with a kid learning the game of baseball, or if you're a youngster learning the game yourself, please forget everything you've seen the Guardians do this inning and burn the video tape.
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Hunter Gaddis barehanded play ends the eighth inning; Guardians lead the Twins 2-1
Who needs a glove?
Hunter Gaddis grabbed a comebacker off the bat of Trevor Larnach with his pitching hand and flipped it to Josh Naylor at first base for the final out.
Gaddis warms up to "Hoist the Colours," otherwise known as the Pirates' theme. But the Guardians would probably prefer if he keeps his pitching hand clean rather than him eventually needing a hook.
Tanner Bibee stays in the game, strikes out Carlos Santana to preserve Guardians lead
With two outs and two runners on in the seventh inning, Guardians manager Stephen Vogt appeared to be taking starter Tanner Bibee out of the game. But Vogt eventually walked back to the dugout while leaving Bibee in to face Carlos Santana.
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Bibee and Santana battled until the latter was struck out looking to end the inning.
Bibee was more than a little pumped up. He yelled to the crowd and motioned for them to all get up on their feet as he walked off the mound.
Hunter Gaddis is coming on to pitch the eighth, so Bibee's day is done. He allowed one run on four hits while striking out eight. His ERA now sits at 3.93.
Brayan Rocchio highlight reel play turns into Guardians double play; See the video
Brayan Rocchio and Andres Gimenez just turned one of the best 6-4-3 double plays in quite some time in Cleveland.
With a runner on in the fourth inning, Ryan Jeffers lined a ball up the middle. Brayan Rocchio, at shortstop, dove to his left and snagged it, and without getting off the ground, flipped it to Andres Gimenez at second base, who made the turn and the throw to first for the double play.
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The Guardians are still holding onto a 2-1 lead.
Jose Miranda home run cuts Guardians lead in half
Tanner Bibee left a fastball up and in the middle of the zone, and Jose Miranda didn't miss it, hitting a solo home run to left field that has cut the Guardians' lead to 2-1 in the third inning.
Other than that home run, Bibee has allowed just one hit and struck out four through three innings.
Andres Gimenez home run gives Guardians lead over Twins
The Guardians got to work early today.
Tyler Freeman opened the day for the Guardians with a single and was followed by Andres Gimenez, who crushed a two-run home run to right-center field.
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That was Gimenez's third home run of the season.
Below is some pregame information.
Jose Ramirez home run moves him into fourth place on Guardians all-time list as he chases down Jim Thome, Manny Ramirez
Jose Ramirez launched his 227th career home run in Saturday's win, which moved him into sole possession of fourth place on the franchise's all-time list.
Here is a projection , based on history, his pace and analytical metrics of when he'll pass the remaining three hitters ahead of him in team history (Manny Ramirez, Albert Belle and Jim Thome). The projection, published last year, was only three days off for when he'd move into fourth place.
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Brayan Rocchio, Tyler Freeman collision; Both players are OK after scary incident
Center fielder Tyler Freeman and Brayan Rocchio remain all right after their collision in shallow center field in Texas earlier this week. Freeman actually made the catch despite the heavy contact.
Guardians City Connect uniforms return after Friday debut against Twins
Friday night's game was the debut of the Guardians' City Connect uniforms, designed in coordination with Nike, which aim to celebrate the history of both the city and the team. You can see images and read about the design here .
Guardians vs. Minnesota Twins pitching matchup
Tanner Bibee is coming off of one of his better starts of the season and will take the mound Sunday afternoon opposite Twins veteran Chris Paddock (4-2, 4.82 ERA).
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Bibee enters 2-1 with a 4.34 ERA.
Guardians schedule, next game
After wrapping up this three-game set with the Twins, the Guardians will welcome the New York Mets for a three-game series beginning Monday night at Progressive Field. The Mets roster has been hit by an illness lately, so it's unclear who will be available for Monday's game.
How can I watch, listen or stream the Cleveland Guardians game tonight?
The game will be broadcast locally on Bally Sports and out-of-network on MLB Network. It'll be broadcast on the radio by WTAM (1100-AM) and WARF (1350-AM, Spanish broadcast).
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Guardians score today versus Minnesota Twins live
