Cleveland 8, Minnesota 2
When: 1:05 PM ET, Saturday, September 24, 2011
Where: Progressive Field, Cleveland, Ohio
Temperature:
65°
Umpires:
Home -
Andy Fletcher, 1B -
Mark Lollo, 2B -
Jim Reynolds, 3B -
Alan Porter
Attendance:
26197
By SportsDirect Inc.
Shelley Duncan drove in three runs - including a tie-breaking sacrifice fly in the sixth inning - as the Cleveland Indians cruised to an 8-2 win over the Minnesota Twins in the first game of a day-night doubleheader on Saturday.
The win was Cleveland's seventh straight over Minnesota, which has dropped 13 of 14. The Twins are 2-17 in their last 19 games and are three defeats away from their first 100-loss season since 1982.
The Indians broke a 2-2 tie with a six-run sixth inning when they sent 11 batters to the plate. Duncan, who had a two-run double in the fifth, put Cleveland ahead for good when his fly ball with the bases loaded scored Jason Kipnis.
Francisco Liriano (9-10) came out of the bullpen to start the sixth and allowed five runs in one-third of an inning.
Zach Putnam (1-1) pitched 1 1/3 innings for his first major-league win.
Cleveland pitchers struck out 13 and didn't issue a walk. Twins rookie first baseman Chris Parmelee struck out in all four at-bats.
Third baseman Danny Valencia and center fielder Denard Span were back in the lineup for the Twins. Both missed Friday's game after being involved in a minor car accident Thursday.
Top Game Performances
Starting Pitchers
Minnesota |
|
Cleveland |
Brian Duensing |
Player |
David Huff |
No Decision |
W/L |
No Decision |
5.0 |
IP |
5.2 |
4 |
Strikeouts |
7 |
3 |
Hits |
8 |
3.60 |
ERA |
3.18 |
Hitting
Minnesota |
|
Cleveland |
Trevor Plouffe | Player |
Jason Kipnis |
3 |
Hits |
2 |
1 |
RBI |
2 |
0 |
HR |
0 |
4 |
TB |
2 |
.750 |
Avg |
.667 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Hits |
HR |
TB |
Avg |
LOB |
K |
RBI |
BB |
SB |
Errors |
Minnesota
|
9 |
0 |
12 |
.250 |
18 |
13 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Cleveland
|
9 |
0 |
11 |
.290 |
8 |
7 |
8 |
3 |
0 |
0 |