It almost felt like the 2016 World Series with just Rajai Davis and a rain delay missing.
Josh Naylor drove in José Ramírez with the go-ahead run in the eighth inning, and the Cleveland Guardians held on for a 9-8 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Monday night in a thrilling game that brought back memories of their 2016 World Series matchup.
Rookie Jhonkensy Noel hit both a three-run homer and a solo shot, and he made a diving catch in right field to save a few runs for the AL Central-leading Guardians, who had just returned home after splitting a tough four-game series with second-place Minnesota.
Steven Kwan also contributed with a two-run homer for the Guardians, who blew an 8-3 lead but still improved their league-best home record to 36-20.
“We’re proving to ourselves we can win in many ways,” said Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt. “This was one of the first times this year we’ve been challenged late in the game, and for our guys to respond and score runs late is huge.”
Ian Happ and Pete Crow-Armstrong hit home runs for the Cubs, who are in the midst of 14 straight games against American League teams.
Ramírez started the eighth with a double off Julian Merryweather (1-1), and pinch-hitter Will Brennan singled before Naylor’s hit into left field.
The Cubs had a 3-0 lead, fell behind by five, then tied the game with four runs in the seventh and one more in the eighth against Cleveland’s strong bullpen.
Although the game lacked the dramatic flair of the 2016 Series, won in seven games by the Cubs with a memorable 8-7 victory in Game 7 after Davis’ unexpected homer off Aroldis Chapman and a rain delay that might have helped Chicago, it had plenty of shifting momentum.
Nick Sandlin (7-0) got the final two outs in the eighth before Vogt brought in closer Emmanuel Clase for the third straight game. Clase retired the Cubs in order for his league-leading 36th save.
“He wants to pitch every day,” Vogt said. “I’ll probably talk to him about it tomorrow. But that’s what you love about him.”
