10:17 p.m.-INDIANS’ NINTH-INNING RALLY FALLS SHORT AGAINST TIGERS
CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Indians will have to wait until at least Saturday to clinch their third straight American League Central Division Championship.
The bottom half of the batting order strung together multiple hits and a sacrifice fly in the ninth inning, but delivered only two of the three runs needed, and when the rally short-circuited, the Indians (82-65) suffered a 5-4 loss to the Detroit Tigers (59-88) at Progressive Field Friday night.
In the ninth inning, the Indians got a lead-off single to center field from third baseman Josh Donaldson, and pinch hitter Yonder Alonso followed with a single to the wall in left that moved pinch runner Erik Gonzalez from first base to third with nobody out.
Then, right fielder Melky Cabrera lifted an RBI sacrifice fly to center field that drove in Gonzalez from third base.
Catcher Yan Gomes followed with a single past diving second baseman Dawel Lugo and into right field, which moved Alonso from first base to third and put runners on the corners with one out. After Gomes got the hit, he was lifted for pinch runner Rajai Davis.
Center fielder Jason Kipnis hit a grounder to first base that looked like it could lead to a game-ending double play, but Tigers first baseman Jim Adduci bobbled the exchange from glove to throwing hand and settled for the out at first base.
With two outs and the game-tying run in the form of Davis at second base, shortstop Francisco Lindor flied to right field for the final out of the night.
PHOTOS | Cleveland Indians face Detroit Tigers in first of three-game set at Progressive Field
9:45 p.m.-TIGERS ADD RUN ON BIZARRE PLAY
CLEVELAND -- Strikeouts are usually a good thing for pitchers, but that was not the case for Cleveland Indians reliever Neil Ramirez in the top of the eighth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Progressive Field Friday night.
Ramirez got Detroit second baseman Dawel Lugo to swing at strike three, but the ball got past catcher Yan Gomes. Although Gomes gathered the loose ball and fired down to first base for the out, base runner JaCoby Jones motored around third base and slid in under Ramirez’s tag after a relay throw from first baseman Yandy Diaz.
Jones’ hustle play on the fielder's choice gave the Tigers a 5-2 lead over the Indians after the top of the eighth inning.
Jones reached base on an infield single that he legged out and beat Ramirez to the bag on, and then, stole second, a call that was upheld despite an Indians managerial challenge.
9:22 p.m.-TIGERS ANSWER WITH RBI DOUBLES
CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Indians’ tie with the Detroit Tigers did not last long, as the bullpen surrendered three doubles, two of which produced a 4-2 lead for the visiting team after the top of the seventh inning at Progressive Field Friday night.
Second baseman Dawel Lugo led off the frame with a double to left field against Indians submarine reliever Adam Cimber, and then, third baseman Jeimer Candelario continued his hot swinging when he blasted a double off of the top of the wall in left field and drove in the go-ahead run.
Indians left-hander Andrew Miller surrendered the go-ahead hit, but Cimber was responsible for the earned run.
Ahead of Tigers pinch hitter Victor Martinez, 0-2, after getting him to swing and miss at the first offering and foul off the second, Miller surrendered a double to the gap in left-center field, and that drove in left fielder Christin Stewart, who reached base on a fielder’s choice to shortstop.
9:01 p.m.-FORMER BLUE JAYS GO BACK-TO-BACK FOR INDIANS
CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Indians had just one hit coming into the bottom of the sixth inning, but a pair of former Toronto Blue Jays teammates took care of that with back-to-back home runs off of Detroit Tigers starter Matthew Boyd and knotted the game at 2-2, to the delight of the home fans at Progressive Field.
First, designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion belted a four-seam fastball from Boyd down a tunnel underneath the left-field bleachers for his 31st on the season. Encarnacion’s 16th home run at Progressive Field this year gave him his 97th run batted in.
Then, third baseman Josh Donaldson sat on a 3-0 pitch from Boyd and smacked it over the wall and just inside the foul pole for his first home run since May 3, when he hit round-trippers in both games of a doubleheader against the Indians at Rogers Centre in Toronto.
8:14 p.m.-TIGERS ADD ONTO LEAD OVER INDIANS
CLEVELAND -- Already leading the Cleveland Indians by a run, the Detroit Tigers built upon their lead in the top of the fourth inning at Progressive Field Friday night.
With first baseman Jim Adduci on second base and one out, center fielder JaCoby Jones sat on a 1-2 cut fastball from Indians starting pitcher Josh Tomlin and roped a double just inside the foul line and to the wall in left field.
Jones’ hit drove in Adduci for the run, which gave Detroit a 2-0 lead over the Indians after three-and-a-half innings in the matchup of American League Central Division teams.
7:18 p.m.-TIGERS TAKE EARLY LEAD WITH SOLO HOMER
CLEVELAND -- The Detroit Tigers needed all of one batter to take a lead over the Cleveland Indians in the opening game of a three-game series at Progressive Field Friday night.
On the third pitch of the game from Indians starter Josh Tomlin, Tigers lead-off hitter Jeimer Candelario dropped the barrel of the bat on a four-seam fastball and belted it over the wall in right field for his 19th round-tripper of the season.
Candelario’s home run was the 23rd allowed by Tomlin this season. However, after allowing the home run, Tomlin worked his way around a walk and single and got three straight outs to end the top of the first inning.
6:30 p.m.-INDIANS COULD CLINCH DIVISION TITLE WITH WIN, HELP FROM KANSAS CITY
CLEVELAND -- The Magic Number for the Cleveland Indians to clinch their third consecutive American League Central Division Championship is down to two heading into tonight’s weekend series opener against the Detroit Tigers at Progressive Field.
An Indians win and some help in the form of a Kansas City Royals victory over the Minnesota Twins at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City will punch Cleveland’s ticket to the postseason for the third straight season.
Should both scenarios happen, the Indians would claim their record 10th AL Central Championship since the division was founded in 1994.
The Indians are sending right-hander Josh Tomlin to the mound and the Tigers will counter with southpaw Matthew Boyd.
Tomlin is 1-5 with a 6.63 earned run average over 55.2 innings of work in 28 games for the Indians this season, while Boyd carries a 9-12 record and 4.11 ERA into his 29th start of the regular season.
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