José Ramírez hit a home run in the eighth inning, securing a 3-2 victory for the Cleveland Guardians over the Minnesota Twins on Friday night. This game also marked the first infield shift violation of the season.
Ramírez’s homer, his 10th of the season, came on a 2-1 pitch from Jhoan Duran, landing in the right field seats. The crowd at Progressive Field cheered as Ramírez’s career homer tally reached 226, tying him for fourth place in club history with Hall of Famer Earl Averill. Only Jim Thome (337), Albert Belle (242), and Manny Ramirez (236) have hit more homers for the team.
Guardians manager Stephen Vogt praised Ramírez, saying he’s running out of words to describe his talent. Despite expecting such performances from Ramírez, it’s still enjoyable to watch, Vogt added.
The Twins, on the other hand, lost their fourth consecutive game, with several calls going against them, including the first two pitches to Ramírez in the crucial eighth inning.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli expressed frustration with these calls, especially when important calls didn’t go their way late in the game.
Tim Herrin earned the win for the Guardians, despite allowing the Twins to tie the game in the eighth. Emmanuel Clase secured his 13th save by pitching a clean ninth inning.
Guardians’ starter Triston McKenzie had a strong outing, allowing just two hits over 6 2/3 innings, with one of those hits being a homer by Alex Kiriloff. David Fry contributed to the Guardians’ offense with a two-run homer in the sixth inning, shortly after a ruling against Twins shortstop Carlos Correa for an illegal shift.
