September 18, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians shortstop Brayon Rocchio (left) connects with second baseman during the tenth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Andreas Jimenez (center) celebrates his game-winning RBI single with Steven Kwan (38). Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images The Cleveland Guardians appear to be ready for the playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Minnesota Twins haven't looked like a playoff contender for a while.
With the playoffs looming, the host Guardians hope to win the four-game series from the Twins on Thursday.
Josh Naylor hit two game-tying homers and Brayan Rocchio's RBI single in the 10th inning in Cleveland's 5-4 win on Wednesday. Three points. The AL Central-leading Guardians (88-65) are 13-7 since Aug. 28 and have a major-league-leading 41 comeback wins.
“We never give up,” Cleveland coach Stephen Vogt said. “When you get behind later or you outlast a team … it just gives you confidence that we can win big games.”
Naylor has been a big-game performer for Cleveland all season long. The All-Star hit his 30th and 31st home runs on Wednesday and is batting .320 with three homers and 13 RBIs in his past 19 games.
Meanwhile, injuries and inconsistency in the Eagles' rotation opened the door for scheduled starter Joey Cantillo (2-3, 4.99 ERA), who made his big-league debut in late July. . In his first four starts, the left-hander went 0-3 with an 8.47 ERA. But since being recalled from the minors on Sept. 9, Cantillo has allowed one run, five hits and just one walk while striking out 16 in 12 innings and earning two starts. He allowed three hits and struck out six in five scoreless innings in Cleveland's 6-1 win over Tampa Bay.
“I just (wanted to) make sure my job was to keep us in the game,” Cantillo said.
On August 9, Cantillo pitched 5 2/3 innings in Minnesota, his third career start and only game against the Twins. Santana and Ryan Jeffers hit solo home runs, but got no offensive support on the mound in the Guardians' 4-2 loss.
The Twins (80-72) are 3-9 against Cleveland in 2024.
Star Carlos Correa continues to be Minnesota's bright spot. After missing nearly two months with a foot injury, Corella had three hits in all four of the Twins' games Wednesday and batted .315.
Minnesota's scheduled starter Simon Woods-Richardson (5-5, 4.08) is wrapping up his first full season in the majors after appearing in the past two seasons. The right-hander ranks as the MLB rookie leader in starts (26) and innings (128).
However, Woods-Richardson may be dealing with general fatigue, having failed to complete more than 4 2/3 innings in his past four starts. During that span, he went 0-2 with a 6.89 ERA and walked out 11 batters. Woods-Richardson allowed three walks, five hits and three runs over three-plus innings in the Twins' 11-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday.
“September is when I pitched (most recently), but knowing that, who cares?” Woods-Richardson said.
“Like I said, I have to go out there and fight and compete.”
Woods-Richardson started two career games against the Guardians and went 0-1 with a 2.19 ERA and showed strong competitiveness, but the Twins lost both times. Naylor and Cleveland All-Stars David Fry and Woods Richardson combined to shoot 4-for-9 from the field.
–Scene-level media