Indians at Twins
The Cleveland Indians were 11 1/2 games back in the American League Central on June 3 but have a chance to tie for first place on Friday as they visit the division-leading Minnesota Twins. The Indians held on for a 7-5 victory in the series opener, improving to 40-16 in their last 56 contests and 19-6 since losing the first two games after the All-Star break to the Twins at home.
Cleveland's Jason Kipnis extended his hitting streak to eight games (13-for-31, three homers, 12 RBIs) on Thursday with two doubles and Jose Ramirez has gone 10-for-25 during a seven-game streak that includes six doubles, six runs and seven RBIs. The Indians will send ace Shane Bieber, who has won nine of his last 11 decisions and is 7-2 on the road, to the mound opposite rookie Devin Smeltzer, who seeks his second straight win. The Twins are 4-3 on their 10-game homestand, giving up a total of 30 runs in three straight losses, while slugger Nelson Cruz (32 homers) is day-to-day after leaving Thursday’s game with a strained left wrist. Minnesota’s Eddie Rosario saw his eight-game hitting streak come to an end as he made the final out with the bases loaded in the series opener while Luis Arraez recorded multiple hits for the fourth time in five games (8-for-18).
TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, MLB Network, SportsTime Ohio (Cleveland), FS North (Minnesota)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Indians RH Shane Bieber (11-4, 3.31 ERA) vs. Twins LH Devin Smeltzer (1-1, 2.28)
Bieber recorded his second complete game in three starts on Sunday, allowing two runs and five hits while registering eight strikeouts to defeat the Los Angeles Angels. The 24-year-old Californian, who can surpass his rookie total with a win on Friday, has given up more than three runs just once in his last 10 turns. Marwin Gonzalez is 5-for-6 with a homer versus Bieber, who is 1-0 with a 3.52 ERA in two games (one start) against Minnesota this year.
Smeltzer has worked at least six innings in each of his first three major-league starts after limiting Kansas City to two hits and a walk over six scoreless frames on Sunday. The 23-year-old native of New Jersey suffered his only loss on June 4 against the Indians as he yielded five runs and five hits (four homers) over 6 1/3 innings. Francisco Lindor went 2-for-2 with a pair of homers and a walk against Smeltzer, who is 1-0 with a 0.84 ERA in four contests (two starts) at home.
WALK-OFFS
1. Minnesota 3B Miguel Sano has gone 5-for-11 with two homers, seven RBIs and four runs in his last four contests.
2. Kipnis has collected 16 RBIs in his last 10 games and is batting .323 since June 16, raising his average from .207 to .261.
3. The Twins recorded three doubles (Sano, Jorge Polanco and Arraez) on Thursday to extend their streak to 69 games with an extra-base hit.