Tribe, Tribe again! Sweep means 1st place Chisenhall swats two …mlb.mlb.com/documents/7/8/8/237211788/cle06182017... · 2017-06-27 · Tribe, Tribe again! Sweep means 1st place

Tribe, Tribe again! Sweep means 1st place Chisenhall swats two of Indians' four homers on rainy night By Jordan Bastian and Shane Jackson / MLB.com | 1:30 AM ET + 22 COMMENTS MINNEAPOLIS -- Lonnie Chisenhall launched a pair of home runs, helping power the Indians to a 6-2 win over the Twins in the nightcap of Saturday's doubleheader at Target Field. With a sweep of the twin bill, Cleveland moved into sole possession of first place in the American League Central. The Indians, who had not held first on their own since May 10, received a two-homer outburst from Jose Ramirez in a 9-3 win in Game 1. In the second tilt, it was Chisenhall's turn to clear the fence twice. He belted a go-ahead solo homer off Twins lefty Adalberto Mejia in the fourth and then spread things open with a three-run shot off reliever Tyler Duffey in the sixth. "He's given us a huge lift. That's the understatement," Indians manager Terry Francona said of Chisenhall. "He always plays a good outfield, but he's been hitting the ball, especially with runners on base, and for damage. I hope it continues." It marked the third career multi-homer game for Chisenhall, who moved into a tie for the team lead in RBIs (35) and ended the day with a .636 slugging percentage on the season. "We knew what we needed to do when we came in here," Chisenhall said. "They were in first place and we had to beat them. They're the team to beat right now." Mejia took the loss for Minnesota after allowing two runs on five hits, including a fourth-inning homer to Austin Jackson, in an outing that was shortened (4 2/3 innings) by rain. After a delay lasting one hour and 15 minutes in the top of the fifth, Duffey took over on the hill for the Twins. "It's not even summer yet," Minnesota manager Paul Molitor said. "You have to keep your perspective. A day like today, it hurts a little bit, because you are out here and working and you come out short in two games. I think we will respond." Francisco Lindor delivered Cleveland's fourth homer of the game in the eighth with a solo blast off rookie Alan Busenitz. The rain also knocked out Indians starter Mike Clevinger after four innings. He allowed one run on a double by Joe Mauer in the third. Twins second baseman Brian Dozier added a leadoff homer against Tribe righty Nick Goody in the sixth. MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Double digits: Chisenhall's second home run of the night gave him 10 shots on the season, and essentially put the game away for the Tribe. Carlos Santana led off the sixth with a walk and then moved up 90 feet when Jackson reached with a perfectly executed bunt single. Two batters later, Chisenhall attacked a 2-1 curve from Duffey, sending it out to right at 105 mph. "I feel like I'm maybe doing a better job of anticipating," Chisenhall said, "and swinging at the pitches I want to swing at. So, looking back, we've had conversations where, if I'm swinging at balls in the strike zone, I'm a different player than if I'm chasing. I try to put some value into that, and I feel like I'm trying to put some good swings on good pitches." Boone buckles down: With two outs in the home half of the sixth, the Indians handed the ball to veteran lefty Boone Logan. He immediately ran into trouble, allowing a single to Max Kepler before issuing a four-pitch walk to Eduardo Escobar. Down by three, it was a prime chance for the Twins to gain ground. Following a quick mound visit from pitching coach Mickey Callaway, Logan used a slider to generate an inning-ending groundout off Eddie Rosario's bat. MLB DEBUT Busenitz made his first Major League appearance, as he entered in relief for the Twins in the top of the seventh. Busenitz, who was acquired through a trade with the Angels last summer, spun two innings of one-run ball in his debut. He struck out his first batter, the red-hot Ramirez (5-for-10 in the doubleheader), and then followed up by inducing a flyout on a 97.3 mph fastball. Only 20 pitches have been thrown harder this year by a Minnesota pitcher, all of which were recorded by Ryan Pressly, according to Statcast™. "He had a nice night. I knew he had the velocity," Molitor said. "It took awhile before we saw the first breaking ball, but when he threw it, it was pretty good. Pretty nice first outing for him." QUOTABLE "You have a lot of excitement for the weekend. We still have a game tomorrow, but it didn't bode well for us. Sometimes you have to tip your cap in the game. They beat us in every facet both games." -- Dozier, on getting swept in the twin bill "You've got two games, rain delay and everybody did something. It was fun. It's a long day, but I thought our guys carried the enthusiasm throughout, and they did a really good job." -- Francona UPON FURTHER REVIEW After working a one-out walk in the third inning, Byron Buxton attempted to swipe second with Dozier batting. Buxton was initially ruled out via a tag placed by Ramirez (playing second in place of Jason Kipnis). However, Buxton was awarded his 13th stolen after a Twins challenge. Buxton later came around to score after an errant pickoff attempt by Clevinger and Mauer's two-out double. WHAT'S NEXT Indians: Right-hander Trevor Bauer (5-5, 5.85 ERA) is scheduled to take the ball for the Tribe in a 2:10 p.m. ET clash with the Twins on Sunday at Target Field. Bauer has posted a 3.65 ERA with two wins in his two appearances against Minnesota this season, but he has a 6.61 ERA on the road this year. Twins: Right-hander Kyle Gibson (4-4, 6.79 ERA) is slated to close out the four-game set for Minnesota on Sunday at 1:10 p.m. CT. He is seeking his fourth straight victory after going 3-0 with a 4.58 ERA over his past three outings. In 10 starts against Cleveland, Gibson has allowed 35 earned runs across 50 1/3 innings. Bauer looks to lead Tribe to Minnesota sweep By Shane Jackson / MLB.com | 7:20 AM ET + 2 COMMENTS The Twins and Indians, tangling atop the American League Central, will conclude a four-game set at Target Field on Sunday as a pair of right-handers square off in the series finale. Minnesota's Kyle Gibson will go opposite Cleveland's Trevor Bauer as the Indians seek a series sweep.

Cleveland claimed control of the division by winning both games in Saturday's twin bill. It marked the first time since May 10 that the Tribe had been in sole possession of first place. The Twins relinquished their advantage after sitting atop the standings, either tied or alone, for 37 consecutive days. Gibson (4-4, 6.79 ERA) will be seeking his fourth straight victory. In three June starts, Gibson is 3-0 with a 4.58 ERA and 14 strikeouts compared to five walks. He has gone at least six innings in each of his past two starts, including a one-run showing on June 8 against the Mariners. "It's one of those things where you hope a guy with experience doesn't try to carry the team on his back," Minnesota manager Paul Molitor said. "They are probably playing with house money, so I'm sure they will be loose." Meanwhile, Bauer (5-5, 5.85 ERA) has had some recent struggles on the mound. He has gone 0-1 with a 5.06 ERA in June, with nine free passes and eight punchouts. In his last start, Bauer tossed 5 2/3 innings of two-run ball in a no-decision against the Dodgers. Things to know about this game • Bauer has made 13 starts against the Twins in his career, going 3-5 with a 5.05 ERA, 74 strikeouts and 25 walks in 76 2/3 innings. • Gibson has seen the Tribe 10 times over the course of his career, posting a 2-4 record with a 6.26 ERA, 33 strikeouts and 20 walks across 50 1/3 frames. • Of the Twins, Joe Mauer has the most at-bats against Bauer with 34. He is hitting .353 with six RBIs against the Cleveland hurler. The Indians' Jason Kipnis has a .533 average (8-for-15) in his lifetime off Gibson. J-Ram homers twice on #ASGWorthy day By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | 2:18 AM ET + 1 COMMENT MINNEAPOLIS -- Inside Target Field's visitors' clubhouse on Saturday morning, Indians manager Terry Francona cast his votes for the American League All-Star team. Francona, who will be managing the AL in light of Cleveland reaching the World Series last fall, has joked that he does not want to go to Miami alone. The Indians then went out and swept the Twins in a day-night doubleheader, running away with a 9-3 win in the afternoon tilt and moving into sole possession of first in the AL Central with a 6-2 win in the nightcap. After the wins, Francona was asked if he voted for third baseman Jose Ramirez, who went 5-for-10 with two homers and two doubles on the day. Full Game Coverage "I voted for all our guys," Francona said with a laugh. Cleveland has seen Ramirez got red-hot in the batter's box plenty of times over the past few seasons, but his latest run has been especially eye-popping. In the last three wins over Minnesota, he has gone 8-for-14 at the plate with six extra-base hits. Dating back to a seventh-inning homer against the Dodgers on Wednesday, Ramirez has gone 13-for-23 with nine extra-base hits. In the opener of the twin bill on Saturday, Ramirez homered from both sides of the plate, taking lefty Adam Wilk to the opposite-field in the first and then pulling a pitch from righty Alex Wimmers out to right in the sixth. Between the blasts, which gave him 11 on the year, Ramirez had a two-run double. For the second game, Ramirez slid over to second base to give Jason Kipnis some rest. "One of us was going to get the second game off," Kipnis said. "I'm like, 'You're staying in there. You hit two home runs -- one oppo.' The way he was doing it in the first game, when you have a doubleheader, that's what you want. You want to ride that out as long as you can. That was great. We've seen him get hot with the best of them." Ramirez doubled in his first at-bat in the second game and added a single before his night was over. Early in the contest, members of Cleveland's relief corps were in the dugout ahead of their in-game trek to the bullpen. While Ramirez was batting, righty Dan Otero glanced up at the Target Field scoreboard and did a double take when he read the switch-hitter's statistics. "It was like two weeks ago he was batting like .260 or something like that," Otero said. "And all of a sudden he's back over .300. I said, 'What the heck just happened?' But, that's what he can do. He can just get hot in a hurry. He's such a good hitter and a bad-ball hitter. He can just hit anything that comes his way." As Otero alluded, Ramirez was batting .265 with a .790 OPS on May 27. Since that day, which was the last time the third baseman's season OPS dropped under .800, he has posted a .400/.418/.707 slash line in 79 plate appearances. With that 19-game showing, Ramirez is now batting .306 with an .896 OPS. "He gives pitchers such a hard time," Indians outfielder Lonnie Chisenhall said. "It's just fun to watch him work. He's methodical. He runs like his pants are on fire when he gets a hit, and it's fun to see what he does. He's a special player." Ramirez's 2 HRs put heat on Twins in Game 1 By Jordan Bastian and Shane Jackson / MLB.com | June 17th, 2017 + 75 COMMENTS MINNEAPOLIS -- Jose Ramirez picked an opportunistic time to catch fire, as his two-homer outburst on Saturday helped the Indians move into a tie with the Twins atop the American League Central standings. In a 9-3 victory over Minnesota in the opener of a doubleheader at Target Field, Ramirez collected three extra-base hits and drove in four runs to power the Tribe's offense. The third baseman's performance, which marked his second multihomer game of the season, gave him 11 home runs on the year. "I'm doing what I've always done," Ramirez said through team translator Anna Bolton. "I'm staying focused, and thank God I've been getting good pitches and getting good swing on them, and I've had success." Twins lefty Adam Wilk was recalled from Triple-A Rochester to start Game 1 of the twin bill, but he lasted just 3 1/3 innings after giving up six runs on eight hits and was designated for assignment after the game. Ramirez got the Indians rolling with a two-out solo homer off Wilk to ignite a three-run first inning. He later added a leadoff shot against reliever Alex Wimmers in the sixth.

Dating back to a seventh-inning home run against the Dodgers on Wednesday, Ramirez has churned out 11 hits, including three homers and five doubles, in a span of 16 at-bats. Over his past 18 games, tracing back to when his season OPS last dropped below .800 on May 27, Ramirez has turned in a .400/.432/.714 slash line in 74 plate appearances. "That's just the game," Ramirez said. "There's going to be good moments. There's going to be bad moments. Throughout all of it, you have to concentrate and figure out what you're doing well in the good moments to get out of the bad moments." The Twins, who have been tied or in sole possession of first in the AL Central since May 11, struck for three runs (two earned) off lefty Ryan Merritt, who was promoted from Triple-A Columbus for the Game 1 start but optioned back to Columbus postgame. Brian Dozier contributed an RBI single in the third, and Ehire Adrianza delivered a two-run double in the fourth. "The first two games have been lopsided," Minnesota manager Paul Molitor said. "We anticipated having some fun this series and competing. But it hasn't really worked out, pitching hasn't really given us much of a chance." MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Zimmer's two-out attack: With two outs and a runner on second in the third, Indians rookie Bradley Zimmer roped a pitch into right-center for an RBI double. The extra-base hit put Cleveland up, 4-0, at the time and marked Zimmer's second breakthrough on the day. He also came through with a two-out, two-run single off Wilk in the first. So far, Zimmer is hitting .500 (5-for-10) with two outs and runners in scoring position this year. "Hit at-bats are pretty mature," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "He might swing through a pitch or chase a breaking ball, but then he makes the pitcher throw a strike to get him out. He's worked some walks in tough situations. He's gotten hits when he's been down in the count. And he's by far our fastest baserunner." Double the trouble: Ramirez did plenty of damage with his two home runs, but it was a two-run double in the fourth that extended the Tribe's lead. With one out and runners on second and third, Ramirez sent a 3-1 slider from Wilk bouncing off the wall in right-center field, giving the Indians a 6-1 lead and ending the pitcher's outing. "I don't think he was real happy he got hit last night late," said Francona, referring to Ramirez getting hit on the left shoulder by a pitch in Friday's win. "It's nice to see a guy react like that -- take it out on the ball. He didn't say a word, but he sure swung the bat." • Raising awareness for prostate cancer: Indians | Twins QUOTABLE "That was awesome. The team's just smashing the ball right now. It's even more fun to pitch in those games. The way they go out there and compete every day and swing the bat and win ballgames for you, it's a good time. It's awesome." --Merritt, on taking the mound in the first inning with a lead "I feel good. Two homers. Four RBIs. I feel good." --Ramirez, when asked how his shoulder felt after Friday's HBP SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Ramirez homered from the right side in the first inning and then from the left side in the sixth. He became the ninth Indians player to go deep from both sides of the plate in a game in team history (done 11 times overall). Most recently, Francisco Lindor achieved the feat on April 5 at Texas. WHAT'S NEXT Indians: Right-hander Trevor Bauer (5-5, 5.85 ERA) is scheduled to take the ball for the Tribe in a 2:10 p.m. ET clash with the Twins on Sunday at Target Field. Bauer has posted a 3.65 ERA with two wins in his two appearances against Minnesota this season, but he has a 6.61 ERA on the road this year. Twins: Right-hander Kyle Gibson (4-4, 6.79 ERA) is slated to close out the four-game set for Minnesota on Sunday at 1:10 p.m. CT. He is seeking his fourth straight victory after going 3-0 with a 4.58 ERA over his past three outings. In 10 starts against Cleveland, Gibson has allowed 35 earned runs across 50 1/3 innings. Tribe utilizes twin-bill rules to bolster roster By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | June 17th, 2017 + 5 COMMENTS MINNEAPOLIS -- The Indians arrived in the Twin Cities with at least four players who were not on the team's active roster. It is possible that even more are hidden around Minneapolis, given Cleveland's maneuvering the past two days. On Saturday, the Indians recalled both lefty Ryan Merritt and righty Mike Clevinger (26th man) from Triple-A Columbus for the team's doubleheader against the Twins. After a 9-3 win in Game 1, in which Merritt logged four innings, the left-hander was optioned back to Columbus. The Indians then recalled third baseman Giovanny Urshela from Triple-A to take Merritt's roster spot, giving the Tribe an extra body for the twin bill. Prior to Game 1, lefty reliever Kyle Crockett was optioned back to Triple-A, and that move came a day after right-hander Adam Plutko was called up from Columbus to give the staff some insurance. "There are a lot of moving parts," Indians manager Terry Francona said. Plutko took the roster spot of left fielder Michael Brantley, who was placed on Major League Baseball's paternity list to be with his wife for the birth of their son, Maxwell. Brantley is expected to rejoin the team on Monday in Baltimore ahead of the four-game set with the Orioles. Triple-A reliever Shawn Armstrong is also in Minneapolis in case Cleveland needs to call up an extra arm. The decision to have Clevinger be the 26th man stemmed from the fact that a player called up in that way is not subject to the rule that says optioned players must remain in the Minors for a minimum of 10 days. Clevinger will technically be sent back to Triple-A after his Game 2 start in Minnesota, but the Indians will be able to recall him to rejoin the rotation for his scheduled start on Thursday. "It allows us to maximize our roster," Francona explained. "That was the reasoning behind that." Urshela, 25, spent 81 games with the Indians in 2015 but has been at Columbus for most of the past two seasons. Through 60 games this year, the third baseman has hit .272 with five homers, 28 RBIs and a .704 OPS.

Indians raise awareness, tip blue caps to dads By Jordan Bastian / MLB.com | @MLBastian | June 17th, 2017 + 1 COMMENT MINNEAPOLIS -- The Indians' blue will be several shades lighter this weekend, as the club joins all of Major League Baseball in its celebration of Father's Day while also doing its part to raise awareness for cancer research. This year, the players will don special blue-tinted uniforms for the games on Saturday and Sunday, and MLB will again donate all royalty payments from the sales of the specialty caps and jerseys to the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Stand Up To Cancer. Full Game Coverage It is also a way for the players to tip their caps to their dads. "He's shown up at a minute's notice numerous times," Indians rookie Bradley Zimmer said of his father, Eric. "I'm sure there's plenty of guys in the Major Leagues that maybe don't have that luxury -- maybe they lost their dad, or he hasn't been in their life. That's just life sometimes. I'm very fortunate to have him in my life. He's done so much for me." Beyond the teams' uniforms, which feature a blue ribbon for prostate cancer awareness, the base decals and lineup cards will also be blue. Fans will also see blue-toned compression sleeves, batting gloves, footwear, protective guards and catcher's gear. For the first time, Father's Day games will also feature a blue-stitched Rawlings baseball as the official game ball. As part of this year's efforts, the Prostate Cancer Foundation is also conducting the "Home Run Challenge," which gives fans the chance to make a one-time monetary donation or pledge for every home run hit by their favorite team between June 1-18. Every dollar donated goes to the PCF to fund research for fighting prostate cancer. Also on Sunday, all 30 teams and their broadcast partners will use the hashtag #MLBDads to share their favorite baseball moments about Dad on social media. MLB is encouraging fans to join the conversation, too. Bradley homers, doubles twice for Akron By William Boor / MLB.com | 1:32 AM ET + 0 COMMENTS Bobby Bradley's season got off to a rough start as he went hitless in seven of his first 10 days and batted just .176 over the month of April. However, Bradley picked it up by hitting .271 in May, and after another strong performance on Saturday, the Indians' No. 4 prospect is batting .309 in June and .250 for the season. Bradley, the No. 83 overall prospect, went 3-for-5 with two doubles, a homer and three RBIs in Double-A Akron's win over Portland. The 21-year-old has hits in six of his past seven games, including a trio of multi-hit efforts. Bradley wasted no time getting in the hit column Saturday as he collected an RBI double in the bottom of the first. After another double in the third, Bradley highlighted a four-run fifth with a two-run homer, his 11th of the season. Covering the Bases: Games 64–65 by Jordan Bastian FIRST: Jose Ramirez had some medical tape on his left shoulder late Friday night, thanks to a bruising 96-mph fastball from Twins reliever Ryan Pressly. Ramirez did not say so publicly, but he wasn’t too thrilled. Indians manager Terry Francona said it for him. “I don’t think he was real happy he got hit last night late,” Francona said. Ramirez got his revenge in the best way possible in an 9–3 win over the Twins in the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader. He homered in the first. He knocked in two with a double in the fourth. He homered again in the sixth. After the win, Ramirez was asked how his shoulder was feeling. “I feel good,” Ramirez said. “Two home runs. Four RBIs. I feel good.” https://medium.com/media/080c0c189b64b12d31478a10bfc06013/href Ramirez wasn’t done, either. Over the course of Saturday’s games, including the 6–2 win in the nightcap, the third baseman went 5-for-10 with two homers and two doubles. On the season, Ramirez is now sporting a .306/.361/.535 slash line with 11 homers, 19 doubles, two triples, 34 RBIs and 40 runs scored. “He is kind of playing with a vengeance. You can tell,” Francona said. “He’s gotten about as hot as you can get. He went from about .265 to .300 in a hurry, and it’s with power. We missed that for a while. Now, it seems like he’s back and he’s got his legs back under him. It’s nice.” Francona hit the average precisely, too. Back on May 27, Ramirez was batting .265. That day is significant for highlighting this red-hot sample, because that was the last time Ramirez’s season OPS dipped under .800. It stood at .790 at the time. Since then? He’s slashed .400/.418/.707 in 79 plate appearances.

“We were in the dugout in the first inning when they hit,” Indians reliever Dan Otero said. “It was like two weeks ago he was batting like .260 or something like that. And all of a sudden he’s back over .300. I said, ‘What the heck just happened?’ But, that’s what he can do. He can just get hot in a hurry. “He’s such a good hitter and a bad ball hitter. He can just hit anything that comes his way. I think the ball that he hit down the line in the first inning [in Game 2] was a backdoor slider that might’ve hit him in the leg if he didn’t swing at it. “He’s just impressive. What he did in the first game, going oppo right-handed, and then pull left-handed to the same spot. That was pretty cool to watch, too.” SECOND: While Ramirez ripped his way through Minnesota’s pitching staff, the Twins wanted absolutely nothing to do with red-hot slugger Edwin Encarnacion. Take a look at how Encarnacion was pitched in Game 1 of the twin bill: “It’s good,” Francona said, “because Edwin’s in a good enough spot now where he doesn’t feel like he has to play catch up. So, he took his walks. And again, it’s keeping that line moving. … He feels pretty good now and he’s going to make them throw strikes.” With no Michael Brantley (MLB paternity list) in Minnesota for this series, Ramirez moved into the 3 spot for the doubleheader. When Ramirez hit fifth (behind Encarnacion) on Friday, the DH launched a three-run home run and drew a walk. On Saturday, with Carlos Santana hitting behind Encarnacion, the DH saw very few pitches over the plate. Santana, of course, headed into this weekend mired in a massive slump. The first baseman did, though, collect three hits and reached four times in the second game. In Game 1, Encarnacion drew three walks before later flying out to right and dropping a single into right. With the Twins going away, away, away, EE had to find a way to push a pitch to the opposite field. Ramirez looks like he’s seeing beach ball-sized pitches right now. Without him offering protection in the fifth slot, the Twins opted to stay away from Encarnacion. That continued in Game 2, when Twins lefty Adalberto Mejia intentionally walked the DH in the first inning. The Twins did begin venturing more in the zone later in the second game, and held Encarnacion to an 0-for-4 showing: Even with a 1-or-6 on the day, Encarnacion is batting .350/.447/.663 over his last 23 games. THIRD: Covering four game’s worth of innings in a three-day span is no easy task. Cleveland had to map out its pitching plans, and then cross their collective fingers that everything went according to plan. Ryan Merritt and Mike Clevinger were called up to start both games. Adam Plutko was promoted for innings insurance. Even Shawn Armstrong not on the active roster was brought to Minneapolis in the event that the Indians were in need of an emergency arm. In Game 1, things went well enough: Merritt: 4 IP, 3R, 2 ER McAllister: 2 IP, o R Shaw: 1 IP, 0 R Otero: 2 IP, 0 R In Game 2, a rain delay (lasting one hour and 15 minutes) in the fifth made a long day even longer, and a little more disjointed. But, Cleveland patched things together like so: Clevinger: 4 IP, 1 R Goody: 1.2 IP, 1 R Logan: 1 IP, 0 R Allen: 1.1 IP, 0 R Miller: 1 IP, 0 R “With Clev, that was going to be unfair to send him back out,” Francona said. “That’s where you start worrying, because if somebody has a hiccup, it might not reach. But, Goody kind of reeled it in enough. He fought his command, but he got them. “And Boone did a really good job facing the guy’s he supposed to. You turn it over to Cody and he gets a first-pitch out, which is so big. If somebody has a hiccup, it probably ends up being a longer game.” HOME: We need to talk about Lonnie Chisenhall. After Ramirez drilled two homers in Game 1, Lonnie Baseball followed with a pair of his own in Game 2. Chisenhall now has 10 homers on the season and is currently tied for the team lead in RBIs with 35 (incredibly, on 34 hits). “He’s given us a huge lift. That’s the understatement,” Francona said. “He always plays a good outfield, but he’s been hitting the ball, especially with runners on base, and for damage. I hope it continues.”

Let’s take a look at Chisenhall’s career power production: So, what gives? “I feel like I’m maybe doing a better job of anticipating,” Chisenhall said, “and swinging at the pitches I want to swing at. So, looking back, we’ve had conversations where, if I’m swinging at balls int he strike zone, I’m a different player than if I’m chasing. I try to put some value into that, and I feel like I’m trying to put some good swings on good pitches.” It’s that simple, folks. EXTRAS: There’s a lot that gets lost in the noise when 18 innings are played in a single day. Take Austin Jackson, for example. In Game 2, he reached base four times. He launched a homer, reached on a perfectly-executed bunt single and drew two walks. He also launched one to deep center in the first inning, but some guy named Byron Buxton owns that real estate. Arguably the best plate appearance of the day, though, went to Erik Gonzalez in Game 1. He reached four times in that win (three singles and one walk), but it was his infield knock in the second inning that stood out. Gonzalez fouled off seven pitches, took three balls and eventually won the battle with lefty Adam Wilk: “That was a big at-bat. I know what that does to our guys,” Francona said. “We did a good job of kind of getting the line moving and keeping it moving and staying after them.” “It was meant as a compliment.” by Jordan Bastian Twins catcher Chris Gimenez started laughing as I approached his locker on Saturday morning. “I saw what you wrote,” Gimenez said with a grin. “‘Indians bully Twins.’ I saw it.” Of course he did. Gimenez is active and friendly on social media, and he still keeps tabs on the Indians the team that drafted him in 2004 and has employed him in the big leagues in parts of four seasons. And, given his comments on Thursday, the catcher has been been hearing it from Indians fans and his former teammates. Gimenez is affable and easygoing a big reason behind him being a fan favorite in his time in Cleveland, not to mention why reporters love working with him and he’s taken all the jabs sent his way in stride. Ahead of the series with the Indians, Gimenez said the Twins were “ ready to kind of take the bully on and punch him in the mouth.” His old teammates found humor in it, because they all know “G” so well. Jason Kipnis yelled at him from across the field before Friday’s game. Josh Tomlin jokingly held up his fists like a boxer. It was all in good fun, and taken as such by the players in Cleveland’s clubhouse. On Saturday, Gimenez cleared the air, explaining what he was trying to get across when he called Cleveland the AL Central’s bully: “It was completely meant as a compliment. Nobody knows them better than me. I was a part of the bully last year, so to speak. I used it more as a metaphor in the fact that, on paper, Cleveland, I think we all know and understand, on paper their team is the best team in the American League. The fact that we [the Twins] have done a really good job of kind of taking care of our business so far this season, the division is wide open at this point. I think we all know that there’s better baseball ahead in Cleveland, and I think the same here in Minnesota. It’s just trying to have a change of culture around here. “Last year, when I was a part of what we had going on in Cleveland, for whatever reason, we would’ve rather played any other team than the Minnesota Twins. They whooped up on us. Every year, you have a team like that. It’s annoying. You kind of need that culture change that we kind of needed over here, coming from being the worst team in the league last year, to now we’ve been in first place for the better part of two and a half months. You’ve go to start to believe that this is for real. It was meant to kind of get our guys going. I knew I was probably going to take some crap from everyone over there, which I did. Fair enough. But, it was obviously meant as a compliment for Cleveland. “And it might’ve got misconstrued a couple ways. I don’t remember saying exactly, ‘Punching them in the mouth,’ but you’ve got to punch back, is kind of what I meant by it. I guess I didn’t know, because I shouldn’t have said it if I did, but I’ve been getting worn out on Twitter about it from all kinds of fans in Cleveland. I used the same analogy last year. We had a big series against Detroit in June or July, and we went out and we swept them. And that was kind of that turning point in the season last year, where for the last five years, Detroit has just taken it to us and mopped the floor with Cleveland. Last year was kind of that turning point when we were like, ‘Hey man, we’re ready to fight back. We’re good and we know it, and we’re not going to take it anymore.’ “I’m owning it. I said it. I absolutely said it. But, it was not meant as an insult. And I know you know that. And I even texted Tito and said, ‘I think you know me well enough. I’m not trying to talk crap about you guys.’ That’s part of my home over there. I grew up in Cleveland, essentially, and obviously it has an extremely special place in my heart. But, at the same time, my job now is here and we’re all best friends, we can be best friends off the field, but when it’s time to play the game, it’s game time. And I’m trying to win. And I think they think the same way. Yeah, I have fun and joke around a lot, but we’re trying to win”

By the numbers: Lonnie Chisenhall helps slug Indians into first place by T.J. Zuppe, 5 hours ago The Indians entered their doubleheader matchup against the Twins with an opportunity to exit the day in sole possession of first place in the American League Central. Considering the ups and down of almost every facet of the Tribe's existence in 2017 — well, outside of their stellar bullpen — that possibility not only speaks to the length of the baseball season but also the state of the division. But the Indians (35-31) have no reason to apologize for their fortunate Central footing, and they certainly showed no mercy on Saturday, beating the Twins in the opener, 9-3, and then topping them in the nightcap, 6-2. The two victories successfully lifted them into first place for the first time since June 1st. The sweep also marked the first time the Tribe has been alone in first since May 10. By the numbers .641: Lonnie Chisenhall's slugging percentage. After a pair of homers helped lift his club to a victory in the second-half of Saturday's twin bill, the left-handed hitter now has 10 home runs this season in just 131 plate appearances. Chisenhall had eight total homers in 418 trips to the plate last year and seven in 363 plate appearances in 2015. So, what's up with the increased power? Recently, manager Terry Francona noted one observation. “He does seem like a more mature hitter — maybe person, too,” Francona said. “I've always thought he was a great kid, but I think with time in the league and going through struggles and things like that, I think you do see that with players.” Anecdotally, that sounds terrific. But what does being more mature have to do with hitting more bombs? That's where some data research can help fill in the blanks. One noticeable trend this year is the increased rate of balls hit in the air, up 10 percent over his career mark entering Saturday's games. For the right hitters, OPS is in the air. That's part of the reason why Chisenhall is creating 52 percent more offense than the league average (152 wRC+). But on top of hitting more fly balls — baseball's hottest new trend — the outfielder has also been far more selective this year. While his overall swinging rate is down by just over one percent, the number of pitches out of the strike zone he's swung at (34.3 percent) was down almost five percent prior to Saturday night. He's also being more selective inside the zone, as you can see in his swing heat maps over the past two seasons. Whether the increased slugging ability will continue is a mystery, but it's clear a more refined approach has helped. And while he's missed some time to injury and has largely served as a platoon player, he's tied with Carlos Santana for the team lead in runs batted in (35). Yeah, we know, RBI is certainly a flawed statistic (you can't knock in guys when they aren't on base), but it's still notable anyhow, dammit. 8: The number of feet that separated Austin Jackson's first-inning fly out and fourth-inning home run. Jackson nearly connected on a grand slam in the top of the first, but the ball was eventually tracked down by the human range machine, center fielder Byron Buxton, 389 feet away from home plate. Jackson's second attempt, however, was successful, launching a 397-foot drive off Twins starter Adalberto Mejia over the wall to tie the game at one. Two batters later, Chisenhall slugged his first long ball of the night, giving the Indians an advantage they'd never surrender. Jackson, by the way, reached base four times in Game 2, picking up a pair of hits and walking twice. Ryan Merritt gave up two earned runs in four innings in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader. (Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports) 134: The number of combined pitches thrown by the Tribe's pair of doubleheader starters, Ryan Merritt and Mike Clevinger. Both hurlers would work four innings in their respective outings, with Merritt benefiting from some early offense and Clevinger being the unfortunate victim of a fifth-inning rain delay. Asking a bullpen to log 10 innings of relief in a pair of games is hardly ever ideal, but the seven arms combined to yield just one run in the doubleheader. Cody Allen worked 1 1/3 perfect innings in the night game, earning his first action since June 11. For his troubles, Merritt was thanked and immediately optioned back to the minors after Game 1, making room for third baseman Giovanny Urshela. Clevinger was sent back to the minors after Game 2, but since the 10-day rule doesn't apply to the 26th man for doubleheaders, the righty will be recalled for his start next week. Oh, those tricky Indians. 5: The consecutive games in which Jose Ramirez has contributed a multi-hit effort. Ramirez pounded out five hits in Saturday's pair of contests, giving him 13 over the past five games. Additionally, he became just the ninth hitter in franchise history to homer from both sides of the plate, knocking a pair of long balls into the seats in the early game. Ramirez has undoubtedly entered the All-Star fray among AL third baseman, owning the highest batting average (.306) and second-highest OPS (.896) among qualified players at the position. At this point, Miguel Sano (Twins), Ryon Healy (Athletics) and Mike Moustakas (Royals) are likely his toughest competition. In case you're wondering, Ramirez was directly behind Sano, the leading vote-getter at third, in the league's latest All-Star voting update earlier this week. More important, Ramirez's bat has help lift the Tribe's offense from their doldrums.

13: Francisco Lindor's season home run total after blasting a solo bomb to the right field seats in the eighth inning. Lindor went 2-for-5 in Game 2, extending his modest hitting streak to four games (6-for-17, .353). For more on the shortstop's attempt to work out of his hitting slump, check out this week's Friday Insider. 1: The Tribe's standing in the American League Central. Thus far, they've outscored the Twins 23-6 in the first three games of the four-game set. We've frequently written about how fortunate the inconsistent Indians are to play in a division which probably doesn't feature a true equal. If they played in the NL West, for instance, they'd be in major trouble. In the AL Central? Not so much. At some point, though, they needed to take advantage of that, and several of the players we've spoken to over the past week or so have agreed. To their credit, they've played some of their most consistent baseball in the first three games of this series and are in position to leave Minnesota with a two-game lead in the division if they can win Sunday's finale. The good play in no way excuses some of the lackluster performances in recent weeks, nor does it indicate all troubles are in the past, but it also speaks to the silliness of declaring any team dead in the first few weeks of June — particularly ones this talented. Ryan Lewis: Indians know it’s early, but eventually they must find top gear as ‘bully’ in AL Central

Ryan Lewis

CLEVELAND: When the Indians walked off the field after a 6-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night, their record had dropped to 31-31. It was the first time since April 7 — when they were 7-7 — that they hadn’t been above .500 this season.

It was also a pretty strong mathematical representation for a team that’s been pretty good but knows it can — or, even should — be great.

Around .500 and on the cusp of leading the division is a place most teams would gladly accept with just under 100 games to go. That’s a pretty good baseball team. But the expectations bar has been raised as high as it’s been in two decades and, to date, the Indians have played below what they can do on paper.

The last two words of that sentence, though, are key.

There have been some injuries. There have been some cold streaks. Slow starts. Slumps. But no disasters or huge setbacks. Just little bumps in the road that have the Indians still trying to correct their course.

Before their current series in Minnesota, Twins catcher Chris Gimenez called the Indians the bullies in the division and said, “It’s time to punch them in the mouth.”

The Indians are still perceived as the top dogs in the division. They’re just wanting to show it.

“I’d be lying to say that we weren’t frustrated with the way we’ve played, and obviously our record shows that,” ace Corey Kluber said. “But, you know, nobody is going to feel sorry for us. We don’t have a choice but to continue to try to play better and to win more games. It’s really that simple. I think that for whatever reason we haven’t been able to put different pieces together at the same time for very many games in a row.”

Maybe the Indians can essentially limp to the American League Central crown. The Minnesota Twins were 34-30 entering the weekend and that’s even a strong overachievement compared to expectations for this season. Meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals remain stagnant at 32-34 each.

But to challenge the likes of the Houston Astros, New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox? The Indians know there’s another gear, but they have to find it.

“I don’t know that I would call it frustration, because I don’t know that there’s any need to press or anything, but I think we think we’re a better team than this,” Andrew Miller said after Wednesday’s loss, which included his second home run allowed in as many games. “I think it’s great that we’ve shown fight at the end. You know, this is a really good team we’re playing but, at the same time, I think big picture, yeah, we think we’re better than 31-31. But nobody really cares what we think. We have to go out there and win more games.”

And that’s the crux of the matter. The Indians do have quite a bit of time to figure things out. As manager Terry Francona said all offseason, he didn’t want the Indians to be talking about 2016 midway through 2017. That isn’t necessarily the case, but it is clear the Indians have yet to find their stride. There’s time, but that doesn’t last forever.

“We’ve been inconsistent in a lot of areas and, at the moment, we’re a .500 team,” Francona said Wednesday night. “So, where do we go from here? Fortunately we have a lot of baseball in front of us, but we need to get moving. The guys know that. I know that.”

Akron Beacon Journal LOADED: 06.18.2017

Cleveland Indians have approached 4-game series against Twins with serious intent

Paul Hoynes

MINNEAPOLIS - Just a hunch, but it feels like the Indians went into this four-game series against the Twins with the idea that it was more than just another series.

Manager Terry Francona said it was a "huge' series before Friday's first game, but he says that every series the Indians play is "huge."

But here's an indicator of how seriously the Indians have approached these four games. They brought at least two extra players with them to Minneapolis to give them options on how they wanted to manipulate their roster, especially in regards to Saturday day-night doubleheader.

When they placed outfielder Michael Brantley on the paternity list Friday, they didn't add another outfielder, but recalled right hander Adam Plutko from Class AAA Columbus. Plutko was a mild surprise, but Francona said he was willing to work around being a position player short rather than being a pitcher short. Pulling Giovanny Urshela out of the hat to play third base in Game 2 on Saturday, now that was a surprise.

Urshela replaced Ryan Merritt, who started Game 1 Saturday, and was optioned to Columbus before the start of Game 2. They also still have right-hander Shawn Armstrong stashed at the team hotel just in case they run short of bullpen arms.

Merritt pitched four innings in the Tribe's 9-3 victory. The Indians won the first two games of the series to move into a first-place tie with the Twins in the AL Central.

Terry Francona explains Cleveland Indians pitching moves for Twins' series

But why did they activate Urshela? He never got a sniff of the big leagues last year after starting 81 games at third in 2015. Last year he was buried behind Juan Uribe and Jose Ramirez. This year he was buried behind Ramirez and Yandy Diaz.

Well, second baseman Jason Kipnis' neck is still sore. He had three hits in Game 1 Saturday, but Francona wanted to make sure he was available for Sunday's series finale.

As for Diaz, the opening day third baseman? If he was healthy, he'd probably be here, but he's on the disabled list at Columbus. So Urshela made sense because the hot-hitting Ramirez can move from third to second, which is what he did for Game 2.

The Indians could have added another outfielder from Columbus. Especially with Brantley missing the Twins' series. Abraham Almonte and Brandon Guyer are on rehab assignments at Columbus, while Tyler Naquin just came off the disabled list for the Clippers.

Francona said Almonte and Guyer, who just started his rehab on Friday, aren't quite ready for a return to the big leagues.

Quiet man: Ramirez made a lot of noise in Game 1 on Saturday. He hit two homers, doubled and drove in four runs. Rookie Bradley Zimmer had four RBI as well, but he did it at the bottom of the order, far from the maddening crowd.

"His at-bats are pretty mature," said Francona, referring to Zimmer. "He might swing through a pitch or chase a breaking ball, but then he makes the pitcher throw a strike to get him out.

"He's worked some walks in tough situations. He's gotten hits when he's down in the count and he's by far our best baserunner."

Zimmer, who did not start Game 2, is hitting .274 (20-for-73) with five doubles, four homers and 19 RBI. He's posted a .868 OPS with 10 runs and six steals in seven attempts.

Walk don't run: The Twins walked Edwin Encarnacion three times in Game 1 Saturday. In his first at-bat in Game 2, he was intentionally walked after a double by Ramirez with two out in the first inning.

Manager Terry Francona on Edwin Encarnacion's three-run homer on Friday night

Not only are Twins pitchers treating Encarnacion with respect because he's started to drive the ball out of the park, but they'd rather face slumping Carlos Santana than him. Santana hit behind Encarnacion in the fifth spot in both games Saturday.

Santana, who historically hits well against the Twins, has been in a long slump. He entered Game 2 hitting .150 (9-for-60) since May 30. He's especially struggling hitting right-handed.

"He's really had a hard time hitting right-handed," said Francona. "He knows it. He's having a hard time mechanically keeping his swing for whatever reason.

"He's had periods in the five years I've been here where that's been the case. But when he goes up there no matter who is throwing I always believe he has a chance. We've always seen that he's always a better second half hitter than he's been in the first."

Finally: The Indians are getting better at hitting with runners in scoring position. Over the last 27 games, they're hitting .262 (58-for-221). Over the first 38 games of the season, they hit .208 (65-for-313).

Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.18.2017

Cleveland Indians, powered by Jose Ramirez, Bradley Zimmer, tie Twins for first place in AL Central

Paul Hoynes

MINNEAPOLIS - Players across the American League were casting their votes for the All-Star team on Saturday. They may want to give Jose Ramirez some consideration.

Ramirez, with or without Russian hacking MLB's voting process, is rolling. He homered twice Saturday in the first game of a day-night doubleheader as the Indians moved into a first-place tie in the AL Central with a 9-3 win over the Twins at Target Field.

The man with two-tone colored hair is working on a streak of three straight games with three hits. He started his day Saturday with a two-out homer in the first and followed with a two-run double in the fourth and a leadoff homer in the sixth.

Ramirez is hitting .643 (9-for-14) with four runs, six doubles, two homers and eight RBI in his three-game sprint. His average has jumped from .283 to .304.

It was Ramirez's second two-homer game of the season and gave him 11 overall. He is the ninth Indian to homer from both sides of the plate in one game. Francisco Lindor was the last to do it on April 5 against the Rangers.

Jose Ramirez on his hot steak for the Indians

The last time the Indians owned a piece of first place was June 1. They have not resided there by themselves since May 10.

"When you start playing a lot of games in a row, it's not surprising when you see some guys get hot because there is so much rhythm," said manager Terry Francona, when asked about Ramirez. "They're getting so many at-bats every day that some of the better hitters get hot.

"Boy, would that be good for us."

Rookie left-hander Ryan Merritt, recalled from Class AAA Columbus, started and held the Twins to three runs over four innings before Francona went to the bullpen. Merritt struck out two, didn't walk a batter and allowed seven hits.

Zach McAllister (1-0), who followed Merritt with two scoreless innings, earned the win.

"It's awesome," said Merritt, who was optioned to Class AAA Columbus after the game. "This team is just smashing the ball right now. It makes it really fun to go out and pitch in these games."

Merritt fared better than Adam Wilk (0-2, 9.00), the Twins' rookie lefty. After Ramirez homered off him in the first, rookie Bradley Zimmer kept the inning going with a two-run, full-count single for a 3-0 lead. Zimmer had two hits, stole a base and joined Ramirez with four RBI in the game.

Zimmer, hitting seventh, doubled home a run in the third and delivered another in the sixth on a force play.

After the game Wilk was designated for assignment.

In the first two games of this four-game set, the Indians have scored 17 runs on 24 hits. They will not face the best part of the Twins' rotation -- Ervin Santana and Jose Berrios, but for a team looking for a spark, the Indians seem to have found one.

Erik Gonzalez singled and Jason Kipnis doubled in the fourth. Ramirez doubled off the wall to bring them home for a 6-1 lead. Ramirez's homer and Zimmer's RBI grounder made it 8-3 in the sixth.

The Indians, who finished with 14 hits, had three each from Kipnis, Ramirez and Gonzalez.

"I'm just doing what I've always done," said Ramirez, through interpreter Anna Bolton. "I'm staying focused and thank God I'm getting good pitches to hit."

What it means

The Indians are 6-2 against the Twins, 17-15 in the AL Central and 19-14 on the road.

The pitches

Merritt threw 61 pitches, 41 (67 percent) for strikes. Wilk threw 92 pitches, (60 percent) for strikes.

The old switcheroo

The nine Indians who have homered from both sides of the plate in one game are Ramirez, Lindor, Carlos Santana, Nick Swisher, Victor Martinez, Roberto Alomar, Eddie Murray, Carlos Baerga and Tony Bernazard.

Martinez and Santana have done it twice.

Thanks for coming

The Indians and Twins drew 24,010 to Target Field on Saturday afternoon for Game 1 of the doubleheader. First pitch was at 2:11 p.m. with a temperature of 81 degrees.

Next

Mike Clevinger (2-3, 4.09) rejoins the rotation when he faces Minnesota lefty Adalberto Mejia (1-2, 5.75) Saturday at 8:10 p.m. in the second game of this day-night doubleheader. Clevinger, who made his last start at Columbus, is 0-1 with a 6.23 ERA against the Twins this season. In three career starts against Minnesota, Clevinger is 0-1 with a 4.63 ERA.

This will be Mejia's first start against the Indians. They are the only AL Central team he has not faced. In four starts inside the division this year, he's 1-1 with a 4.96 ERA. The opposition is hitting .194 (7-for-36) with runners in scoring positon.

Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.18.2017

What will it take to keep the Cleveland Indians fully engaged? Rant of the week

Paul Hoynes

MINNEAPOLIS - In the fifth inning Friday night, second baseman Jason Kipnis told his double play partner, Francisco Lindor, "This is the best game we've played all year."

Kipnis was talking about offense, defense, pitching and baserunning.

"We looked at each other and said, "Everyone is locked in right now,'' said Kipnis. "Then we said, 'Well, where has this been?' But it was good to see."

What stirred the placid Indians into attack mode during their 8-1 win over the Twins at Target Field? Perhaps it was the sight of first place in the AL Central. The Twins own the top spot, but Friday's win by the Indians cut the lead to one game.

Of course, the Indians owned the AL Central last year on the way to the pennant and trip to the World Series. Whatever the motivation, it's been a long time coming for a team that has been content to spend the first 10 weeks of the season vacillating between kind of good and kind of bad.

Before this four-game, three-day series began, catcher Chris Gimenez went on a Minneapolis radio station and said that the Twins needed to "punch the bully in the mouth." The Indians, in this case, were the guys who needed the knuckle sandwich.

Gimenez was drafted and developed by the Indians and has made several stops with them in a much-traveled career. One of those stops was last year when he helped the Indians do so many good things. His old teammates knew exactly what he was doing.

"We know his personality," said Kipnis. "The Twins are feeling good about themselves. He's trying to keep that flow going for them. I don't think there's a need for a response from us at all. I think that was more for their locker room than ours."

Gimenez, talking about Cleveland on @Go963MN : "We're looking to punch the bully in the mouth."

-- LaVelle E. Neal III (@LaVelleNeal) June 15, 2017

Still, it was interesting to see what it took to get the Indians' attention. But are they fully engaged? Or are they still hip deep in the World Series quicksand that has pulled the Cubs and them toward mediocrity following their seven-game World Series?

"It's one game, but it's the start of a lot of baseball this weekend," said manager Terry Francona after Friday night's win. "I thought we played a good game tonight."

The Indians and Twins will play a day-night doubleheader on Saturday before ending the four-game series on Sunday. After that the Indians play 21 games in 22 days going into the All-Star break. Last year they went 22-6 in June, including a franchise-record 14-game hitting streak, to take control of the division. Friday's win made them 6-7 in June.

When Francona talks about getting into the "grind of the season,' this is what he means. To Francona part of the grind means paying attention to detail. It is something the Indians haven't been particularly good at through their first 64 games. They were better Friday night.

Left fielder Daniel Robertson, filling in for Michael Brantley, threw out Eddie Rosario, who tried to advance from first to second on Brian Dozier's fly ball in the third inning. Jose Ramirez, with his second straight three-hit night, went from first to third on Carlos Santana's bloop single to left in the second. When Yan Gomes followed with a single, Ramirez scored for a 1-0 lead.

Kipnis, back in the lineup after missing two games with neck spasms, drew a leadoff walk in the third. He stole second and took third on Robertson's sacrifice bunt. After Francisco Lindor walked, Edwin Encarnacion, swinging tension free at last, hit a 435-foot home run into the second deck in left center field for a 4-0 lead. Asked what it felt like to hit a ball that far, Encarnacion smiled and said, "It felt good."

Encarnacion has proven to be understated unless he has a bat in his hands.

Manager Terry Francona on Edwin Encarnacion's three-run homer on Friday night

Gomes drove in three runs with two singles. Lonnie Chisenhall, after frustrating himself with a botched bunt attempt in the second, doubled off the wall in right center to score two runs in the fifth. Carlos Carrasco threw only 57 percent of his pitches for strikes, but avoided the mid-game fade that has been dogging him for the last few starts to reach the seventh inning.

Chisenhall said the Indians are starting to show the fight they had last year.

"Even though we lost two out of three to the Dodgers (Tuesday through Thursday), we kept chipping away and chipping away and scored some runs at the end of those games," he said. ""That's the fight we're looking for.

"We scored eight tonight (Friday). We just have to keep going in that direction, where it's one through nine instead of sitting around and waiting for one guy."

The rotation is still a question. Corey Kluber has made three quality starts since coming off the disabled list, but the back injury that put him there is going to have to be handled all season. Carrasco has been OK, but Danny Salazar is at Class AA Akron rehabbing a sore right shoulder.

Josh Tomlin has shown Texas-sized grit, but it's still uncertain how many innings he's going to pitch from one start to the next. Trevor Bauer is sitting at 5-5 with a 5.85 ERA. There are times it feels like he's pitched much better than his numbers and there are times when it feels like he's pitched worse.

The Tribe's starting pitching depth will be on display Saturday when Ryan Merritt and Mike Clevinger start the doubleheader. Clevinger, who replaced Salazar even before his right shoulder started barking, has done a nice job.

Francona takes great care to protect his bullpen, but Andrew Miller looked fried around the edges Tuesday and Wednesday against the Dodgers. Bryan Shaw just keeps pitching and pitching and pitching. Going into Saturday's doubleheader he'd made five appearances in the last seven days. Where they will be by the break depends on a lot of things, but a few more innings out of the rotation would certainly help.

Maybe this mid-June series with first place on the line was what the Indians needed to sharpen their focus. But what will decide their fate will be how they perform in the 95 games that remain when they leave Target Field on Sunday night.

Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.18.2017

Lonnie Chisenhall homers twice as the Cleveland Indians complete doubleheader sweep of Twins, 6-2

PAUL HOYNES

MINNEAPOLIS - The Indians moved to the top of the AL Central for the first time in more than a month on Saturday thanks to big offensive games by Jose Ramirez and Lonnie Chisenhall.

After Jose Ramirez hit two homers and drove in four runs in the first game of a day-night doubleheader, Lonnie Chisenhall did the same in a rain-interrupted nightcap as the Indians swept Minnesota, 9-3 and 6-2, at Target Field.

The Indians, who came into town trailing the Twins by two games, have taken a one-game lead in the Central by winning the first three games by a combined score of 23-6. It's the first time they've been alone in first since May 10.

Francona credited the entire roster with Saturday's success.

"You've got two games, a rain delay. I mean everybody did something," said Francona. "It was fun. It's a long day, but I thought our guys carried the enthusiasm throughout."

Terry Francona on doubleheader sweep of Twins

Chisenhall is hitting .500 (6-for-12) with three homers and 11 RBI in his last four games. His four-RBI game Saturday night tied him with Carlos Santana for the team lead with 35. Here's the head scratcher: Santana has 258 at-bats, while Chisenhall has 118.

"We want to continue to push," said Chisenhall. "We knew what we needed to do when we came in here. They were in first place and we had to beat them. They're the team to beat right now.

"We done OK so far and we've got to continue that Sunday."

Mike Clevinger started for the Tribe and had a 2-1 lead when rain ended his night. He allowed one run on two hits in four innings, but did not return after a 1-hour, 15-minute delay.

Clevinger's one problem, beside the rain, came in the second inning when he walked Byron Buxton with one out. Buxton stole second - he was originally called out, but the call was overturned after a review of 2:32 - and went to third on Clevinger's errant pickoff attempt. Joe Mauer doubled him home for a 1-0 lead.

Austin Jackson and Chisenhall put the Indians in front, 2-1, with homers off Adalberto Mejia (2-4, 5.53) in the fourth. Jackson, who just missed hitting a grand slam in the first, tied the score with a one-out homer to center. Chisenhall put the Indians in front when he pulled a 0-2 pitch over the right field wall.

Prodigious. https://t.co/JT5DilBVSX pic.twitter.com/5qOX6TdeSO

-- #VoteTribe 5x a day (@Indians) June 18, 2017

After the rain delay, a walk to Carlos Santana and a perfect bunt single by Jackson set up Chisenhall who took a hanging breaking ball from Tyler Duffey 20 rows deep in the right-field corner for a 5-1 edge.

"Lonnie has given us a huge lift, and that's an understatement," said Francona. "He always plays a good outfield, but he's been hitting the ball, especially with runners on base, with damage. I hope it continues."

Chisenhall has hit 10 homers, two more than he did last season. His career high is 13 set in 2014.

Homers produced all the Indians runs in the second game. After Jackson and Chisenhall got done swinging, Francisco Lindor homered with two out in the eighth to make it 6-2. It was Lindor's 13th homer and first since May 31.

The Indians hit six homers in the doubleheader. In the first three games of the series, the Indians have outhomered the Twins, 8-2.

The game was stopped with Daniel Robertson on first, two out and a 1-0 count on Edwin Encarnacion in the fifth. Nick Goody, who replaced Clevinger after the delay, pitched 1 2/3 innings for the win.

What it means

The Indians have won four straight games overall. They're one shy of matching their longest streak of the season.

They're 6-2 against the Twins and have won seven straight at Target Field. They're 19-14 on the road.

The pitches

Clevinger threw 74 pitches, 44 (57 percent) for strikes. Adalberto threw 85 pitches, 54 (64 percent) for strikes.

Good day's work

Ramirez, who started at third in Game 1 and second in Game 2, went 5-for-10 in the day-nighter. He goes into Sunday's game hitting .306 (75-for-245).

Thanks for coming

The Indians and Twins drew 21,371 to Target Field on Saturday night for the second game of a doubleheader. First pitch was at 8:11 p.m. with a temperature of 73 degrees.

The game was delayed in the fifth inning by rain for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Next

The Indians and Twins will end this four-game series Sunday afternoon when Trevor Bauer (5-5, 5.85) faces right-hander Kyle Gibson (4-4, 6.79) at 2:10 p.m. SportsTime Ohio, WTAM/AM 1100 and WMMS/FM 100.7 will carry the game.

Bauer is 2-0 with a 3.65 ERA in two starts against the Twins this year. In his career, he's 3-5 with a 5.05 ERA in 13 starts against them.

Gibson is coming off a win against Seattle. He's won his last four decisions after starting the season 0-4. Gibson is 0-1 against the Indians this season and 2-4 with a 6.26 ERA against them in his career.

Cleveland Plain Dealer LOADED: 06.18.2017

Cleveland Indians have Terry Talkin' slumping Carlos Santana, rising Edwin Encarnacion -- Terry Pluto BY TERRY PLUTO, THE PLAIN DEALER [email protected] ABOUT CARLOS SANTANA Not much has been said about this, but Carlos Santana is in the final season of his contract. The Indians picked up his $12 million option for the 2017 season. Spending those dollars made sense. The Indians are the defending American League champions, and Santana had an excellent 2016 season, batting .259 (.865 OPS) with 34 HR and 87 RBI. At 31, he still should be in his prime. Looming free agency is often a great motivator for players. But Santana is off to one of the worst starts of his career. 1. He entered the weekend batting .212 (.689 OPS) with 8 HR and 35 RBI. 2. Santana is usually a slow starter. In the previous three seasons, he batted only .205 (.729 OPS) heading into June. 3. But Santana usually begins to hit in June, .247 over the last three years with an .816 OPS. 4. But June has been Santana's worst month in 2017, batting .139 with 2 HR and 5 RBI heading into the weekend.

Santana has a lot of good qualities. He is extremely durable, averaging 155 games per season. He has been willing to play different positions. He came to the big leagues as a catcher. Several concussions and general defensive issues led to a position change. He moved to first base. In 2014, he was the opening day third baseman. He has played a little bit in the outfield. Santana's real value is his bat. At his best, he hits for power -- an average of 26 HR over the last four seasons. He also draws a lot of walks. But this season, the power is way down. His walk rate is down. Santana is a career .247 hitter, but his batting average is sinking. He is supposed to be healthy. He looks obsessed with pulling the ball, something that often leads to slumps. A career .269 batter from the left side of the plate, the switch-hitter is batting only .172 as a lefty in 2017. ABOUT EDWIN ENCARNACION Edwin Encarnacion's early-season slump kept some of the criticism off Santana. He was the $20 million a year import from Toronto who had a miserable first six weeks of the season. Now, Encarnacion is hitting like the player who averaged 39 HR and 110 RBI for Toronto in the previous five years. 1. Encarnacion entered the weekend batting .255 (.841 OPS) with 14 HR and 31 RBI. 2. Starting a month ago -- May 16 -- Encarnacion is batting .341 (1.082 OPS) with 9 HR and 19 RBI in 25 games. 3. My only issue is Encarnacion batting .145 with runners in scoring position. To be fair, he was at .089 a month ago, so that's also improving. 4. The Indians signed the DH/first baseman to a 3-year, $60 million deal to replace Mike Napoli in the middle of the lineup. 5. Now with Texas, Napoli has been on the disabled list since June 3 with a minor back problem. He is starting to play in minor league rehabilitation games. Napoli is batting .192 (.669 OPS) with 11 HR and 25 RBI. 6. The 34-year-old Encarnacion also is insurance in case Santana leaves via free agency, or if Santana has a major decline and the Indians decide to spend money elsewhere. ABOUT LONNIE CHISENHALL Because Chisenhall was a first-round draft choice in 2008, the temptation is to consider him a disappointment. At one point, the Indians believed Chisenhall would be their everyday third baseman. He first came to the majors in 2011 at the age of 22, batting a respectable .255 (.699 OPS) with 7 HR and 22 RBI in 65 games. But Chisenhall bounced up and down from the minors to Cleveland. He struggled defensively at third base. In 2015, Chisenhall started poorly, was sent back to the minors and switched to right field. Suddenly, the Indians found a role for Chisenhall -- an outfielder who plays primarily against right-handed pitching. He has now played 187 big-league games in the outfield. He's batting .294 (.812 OPS) with 17 HR and 103 RBI. He also is above average in right field. Now 28, Chisenhall has found his spot in the big leagues. His hard work switching positions along with the Indians' patience has paid off. ABOUT THE INDIANS 1. The Indians believed the back problem that caused Corey Kluber to miss most of the month of May was minor. Kluber said that was the case. Doctors agreed. But the Indians were worried, as Kluber never complains about anything. Back issues often can linger. 2. The good news is Kluber has pitched three times since coming off the disabled list. He is 2-0 with a 2.32 ERA, throwing like one of the top starters in the American League. 3. If you add in the 2016 post-season, Kluber had a 22-10 record and threw 249 innings. That's a lot of work, often wearing down a pitcher for the next season. That's why there are a lot of smiles and a sense of relief about Kluber's performance. 4. Francisco Lindor has fallen into the home run habit. Actually, trying to pull the ball to hit homers. He belted 7 HR in April, batting .309. By May, by trying too hard to hit the ball over the wall, his average dropped to .245 with 5 HR.

5. June has been a frustrating month. Lindor is batting .196 with 0 HR, 2 RBI in 52 at-bats. He has walked only three times. He's struck out only four times, so that's not the issue. Lindor is swinging at pitches out of the strike zone, trying to pull them. The result is a lot of soft fly balls and ground outs. 6.This is his most significant slump since he came to the majors in 2015. He batted .233 in his first 100 big league at-bats, then hit .345 for the rest of the season. Lindor is a gifted athlete. He entered 2017 with a career .306 average in the majors. So there is no reason for alarm. But it just shows how players can mess up their swings. Indians power past Twins into 1st place with 9-3, 6-2 sweep The Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The Cleveland Indians have had the Twins right where they wanted them for this pivotal midseason series. In Minnesota, actually. Lonnie Chisenhall hit two home runs in the second game after Jose Ramirez went deep twice in the opener, and the Indians took over first place in the AL Central by sweeping a doubleheader from the Twins with 9-3 and 6-2 victories on Saturday. ''It was fun. It's a long day, but I thought our guys carried the enthusiasm throughout,'' Indians manager Terry Francona said. The Indians have won seven straight games in Minnesota and are 7-2 this season overall against the Twins, whose 38-day stretch in first place ended in anticlimactic fashion. They're 14-23 this year at Target Field, the worst home record in the major leagues. ''We knew what we needed to do when we came in here,'' Chisenhall said. ''They were in first place, and we had to beat them.'' Soundly, so far. The Indians have outscored the Twins 23-6 over the first three games of the series. ''These guys are swinging well,'' Twins manager Paul Molitor said. ''They're probably playing with house money tomorrow a little bit, so I'm sure they'll be loose.'' Austin Jackson hit a solo shot in the nightcap against Twins starter Adalberto Mejia (1-3) in the fourth inning, before Chisenhall homered to put the Indians in front. Following a 75-minute rain delay , Chisenhall crushed a three-run drive against Tyler Duffey for a 5-1 lead in the fifth inning and his 10th home run of the season in just 118 at-bats. Francisco Lindor went deep in the eighth, too, giving the Indians six home runs for the day against a depleted Twins pitching staff that sent out rookies into starting roles for the first three games. The split-admission doubleheader, created by a rainout here on April 19, didn't help a bullpen with the worst ERA in the major leagues, either. ''When we made mistakes today, they hit them over the fence. They made mistakes, and we hit them to the track for the most part,'' Molitor said. Ehire Adrianza drove in two runs in the opener for the Twins, and Joe Mauer hit an RBI double before Brian Dozier homered in the nightcap. That was about it for the offense on this weak weekend. ''I hate to, but sometimes you've got to tip your cap to the other team,'' Dozier said. ''They beat us in every facet of both games.'' RED-HOT RAMIREZ Ramirez has two or more hits in five straight games. He's 8 for 13 with two doubles, two homers, four runs and four RBIs in the series. ''He's kind of playing with a vengeance, you can tell,'' Francona said. WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN? This was the third delayed game this season at Target Field, which has had three postponements. The Twins played their third doubleheader here, with two more scheduled for the road. They'll play on Sunday for the 33rd time in 34 days. ''You don't make excuses by any means,'' Dozier said, ''but this is a long stretch.'' DECISIONS, DECISIONS The rain stopped Mike Clevinger's start in the second game after four innings, so reliever Nick Goody (1-1) was credited instead with the win, the first of his career after 56 appearances. Zach McAllister (1-0) pitched two hitless innings in the first game for the victory. He worked in relief of starter Ryan Merritt, who made his season debut with four innings, seven hits and three runs allowed before being sent back to Triple-A. WILK WILTS

Ramirez ignited a three-run first inning in the opener with a two-out homer off Twins starter Adam Wilk (0-2), who was recalled from Triple-A for the game and designated for assignment right after. Wilk surrendered six runs, eight hits and three walks in 3 1/3 innings. BUSENITZ BUZZING The Twins promoted right-handed reliever Alan Busenitz from Triple-A Rochester for the second game, and he made his major league debut with two innings, one run allowed and a fastball that frequently reached the mid-90s. The 26-year-old was acquired last season in a trade with the Los Angeles Angels. TRAINER'S ROOM Indians 2B Jason Kipnis had two doubles and a single with a run scored in the opener despite a sore neck. He rested during the nightcap. UP NEXT Indians: RHP Trevor Bauer (5-5, 5.85 ERA) makes his team-leading 14th start on Sunday. He's beaten the Twins twice this season. Twins: RHP Kyle Gibson (4-4, 6.79 ERA) takes the mound in the series finale. He's 4-0 in five starts, albeit with a 5.46 ERA, since being recalled from Triple-A. JIM INGRAHAM Indians Commentary: It's about time Tribe started to make a run Jim Ingraham | The Chronicle-TelegramPublished on June 18, 2017 | Updated 1:16 a. m. Happy anniversary! It was one year ago Saturday — June 17, 2016 — that Carlos Santana hit a walk-off homer in the ninth inning to beat the White Sox 3-2. The Indians wouldn’t lose another game until July 2. They won 14 games in a row, the longest winning streak in franchise history, breaking the previous record of 13, which had stood for 74 years. The Indians’ 14-game winning streak was the trampoline to a 69-42 finishing kick that included a 10-5 postseason record. In winning 14 in a row, the Indians outscored their opponents by the astounding margin of 82-27. They averaged 5.9 runs per game and they held their opponents to 1.9 runs. Repeat: 1.9. How’s that for pitching? Holding the opposition to an average of less than two runs per game for 14 consecutive games. That’s how you get yourself into the postseason, boys and girls. A year ago Saturday, it all started. Less than a week ago, Terry Francona, when the Indians were getting Dodgered, losing two of three games to a team that on consecutive nights made Andrew Miller look like Aaron Laffey, checked the baseball landscape, the Central Division standings and his wristwatch, and declared, “We need to get going.” For the steady-as-she-goes Indians skipper, it was an uncharacteristic public call to combat that was striking. After basically calling out his team, Francona then showed that he was going to manage accordingly, going all out to win every game. In losing back-to-back games to the Dodgers, Francona threw a saddle on Miller, his prized bullpen show pony, and rode him hard: bringing him into a game against the Dodgers and allowing him to throw 24 pitches, just 24 hours after Miller had labored through a 25-pitch oil spill. Sometimes, because waiting for the homestretch might be too late, the jockey has to go to his whip in the backstretch. Francona, who has ridden more than his share of winners, is doing that. He has begun to sacrifice bunt and pinch-hit earlier in games. In the first game with the Dodgers, Corey Kluber threw 106 pitches, the most he’s thrown in a game since April 21. Friday night against the Twins, Francona used Bryan Shaw for two innings in an 8-1 game, even though there was a doubleheader the next day. So Francona is managing like it could get late early this year. His team, the supposed prohibitive favorite to win the Central Division, needs to start playing like it — and now, maybe, it has. The Indians won the last game of the Dodgers series and the first two games in Minnesota. Entering Saturday’s doubleheader, since May 21 the Indians had only been in first place for four days.

For most of June they had been unable to catch the implausibly first-place Twins, who lost 103 games last year, have the worst home record in the majors this year, have been outscored by their opponents by 41 runs overall, and in June have a team ERA over 6.00. Still, the Indians couldn’t catch them, until the Indians’ win in the first game Saturday gave both teams identical 34-31 records. The only saving grace for the slow-starting Indians: For most of the first 2½ months of the season the whole Central Division resembled a giant baseball sinkhole. It’s the chasing-their-tail division. The nothing-to-see-here, folks, division. Lots of thrashing around, but nobody really going anywhere. Yet as bad as the Indians had seemingly played up until the last few days, they’ve actually been no worse than they were at the same time last year. Through 65 games this year, the Indians were 34-31, and tied for first in the division. Through 65 games last year, they were 35-30, and also tied for first place. Last year’s jumper cables were that 14-game winning streak. This year, one of the starting outfielders is Daniel Robertson, who’s actually been one of their better players over the last week. Baseball, what a funny game. Francona, who was briefly hospitalized last week due to dehydration — he was short on liquids AND victories — has gone to the whip. The Indians have responded, and are positioned to make a move. Starting with their weekend in Minnesota, seven of their next 11 games are with the Twins. The other four are with the dead-in-the-water Orioles, who went into play Saturday having lost 24 of their last 33 games. The Indians’ starting rotation is still an unpredictable box of chocolates. It took them 2½ months to run down the Minnesota Freaking Twins. Kluber missed a month’s worth of starts, they have a losing record at Progressive Field, but they still went into the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader tied for first place. Clippers 8, Braves 2 | Tyler Naquin’s slam sends Clippers past Braves Tyler Naquin erased a two-run deficit with a fifth inning grand slam, and the Clippers went on to defeat Gwinnett 8-2 Saturday night in front of 11,675 at Huntington Park. Naquin, who added an RBI groundout in the sixth, drove in Mike Papi, Josh Wilson and Todd Hankins on a shot to left field to give the Clippers a 4-2 lead. Papi led off the inning with a walk, Wilson singled and Hankins was hit by a pitch. The Clippers added four more runs in the sixth on Naquin’s grounder and RBI singles by Hankins, Eric Stamets and Chris Colabello. Naquin, Papi and Wilson each scored twice. Matt Whitehouse (1-0) earned the win after 5 1/3 innings of work, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts. The Clippers’ defense turned three double plays. Cole Sulser, Tyler Olsen, Carlos Frias and Louis Head tossed 3 2/3 hitless innings in relief. Aaron Blair (4-4) took the loss for Gwinnett, allowing five runs on five hits through 5 1/3 innings. RubberDucks 8, Sea Dogs 3 RubberDucks 8, Sea Dogs 3 Storylines: For the third consecutive game, the RubberDucks went ahead for good on a home run. This time, Bobby Bradley hit a two-run homer to right field in the fifth inning in front of a sellout crowd of 8,284 at Canal Park. Duckbills: After Sunday, Portland will be glad to not have to face Luigi Rodriguez, who has five home runs this season and four of them — including one Saturday — have come against the Sea Dogs. In a roster move, infielder Jorma Rodriguez (.204, two home runs, nine RBI) was called up from Lake County. Next: The final game of the three-game home series has been moved up to 12:05 p.m. Sunday in anticipation of bad weather. Ducks right-hander Matt Esparza (3-0, 1.71) will face right-hander Travis Lakins (0-4, 8.14). — Brad Bournival

RubberDucks play-by-play announcer Dave Wilson and family to celebrate first Father’s Day since tragic death of oldest son Tucked away in the sleeve of Dave Wilson’s wallet is a guitar pick encased in a sticky note. The pick belonged to his son. The note is an unfinished list of presents Grant, 17, was going to buy his family for the holidays. The RubberDucks play-by-play announcer on 1350 WARF will spend his first Father’s Day without his oldest son, who was killed in a car crash two days before Christmas. Dave, his wife, Wendy, 50, his youngest son Greg, 10, and his daughter Grace, 21, will celebrate Sunday like they have in years past. Grant will be there in spirit as well. “The last six months has been literal hell for our family,” Dave said. “I sort of compare it to losing a body part. If you lose your arm, you recover, you get over it, but you’re not the same and you’ll never stop missing your arm. “You’ll learn to live without it. You may even learn to excel, but it’s always going to be there, that reminder that something’s wrong, something’s missing and it can’t be fixed.” The night started great with Grant, his girlfriend, Adriana Holst, and her father taking in “Deck the Halls” at Stan Hywet Hall, but ended too soon. After leaving Stan Hywet, with Adriana in the front passenger seat, her father driving and Grant in the backseat, their car was traveling south on North Portage Path when it attempted a left turn onto Sunnyside Drive and was struck on the right rear passenger door by a car traveling north on Portage Path. Grant’s car then spun around and struck a telephone pole. Adriana and her father and the driver of the other vehicle were hurt in the crash but have recovered. The driver of the other car, John Bird, has pleaded not guilty to charges in the crash. Ready to celebrate the season, Dave’s family, who buried his mother, Bonnie, two days earlier, faced a struggle no one should with a son still in high school. “It is a daunting responsibility to think that not only do I have to try to handle this for my own self, but to try to help them get through it also,” Dave said. “My daughter and Grant were very similar in age and had a tremendous bond over so many years. This has been extremely difficult for her, but she’s handled it. I’m very proud of her. “Greg, as a child, processes things differently. Telling him that this happened the next day was without question the hardest thing I ever had to do. I sat him down and told him what happened straight out. His response was, ‘We’re going to get through this together.’ ” Dave admitted he wakes up in the morning thinking about his oldest son and goes to bed wishing he could say “Goodnight, Grant” in person just one more time. What he has found out is his son was even more special than he imagined. Chagrin Falls High School staff told the family how special Grant was and reiterated that after Dave spoke at the school’s baccalaureate. Fellowship Bible Church has been there every step of the way, the RubberDucks have embraced their longstanding announcer and the community has given support. “After the accident, when we would interact with people from the school, it became so much bigger in terms of the impact he had on people,” Dave said. “A lot of it he never talked about at home, but we would find out later how much he meant to other people. People we didn’t even know would come up and say something that Grant did or something he said or how he made everyone laugh. “We just heard how he would go above and beyond for people. I just feel like I’ve learned a lot more about him since the accident than I even knew before because he was a great kid. He sought to make other people happy without any expectation of payback. There was no agenda. He was just a genuine nice human being. “The outpouring of support was beyond anything we could have imagined. We could not have gotten this far without it. Whether it’s cards, letters or people just offering a shoulder or an ear or whatever, it just refreshed us and helped us cope because it seemed like everyone was hurting just as much as we are. The team has been great to me. For someone who is going through a tragedy, that support system is critical.” The Wilsons will get through Sunday like they did on Christmas and like they did Jan. 3, which is Grant and Dave’s birthday. They’ll cope like they did on Mother’s Day and Easter. Most of all, they’ll celebrate Grant and honor the young man they got to know and love for almost 18 years. “When you were around Grant and you spent time with him and got to know him, you walked away a better person, happier, feeling better about your situation,” Dave said. “He brought happiness, joy and laughter to any situation. He did it through his music. He did it by caring about

what was bothering you. He wanted to talk about what was on your mind, not what was going on with him. He was as selfless as you could possibly be.” Nick Cafardo / SUNDAY BASEBALL NOTES / All these catcher trips to the mound? They’re becoming a problem

By Nick Cafardo

Does it drive you crazy when the catcher constantly goes to the mound to talk to the pitcher about who knows what?

It’s not just aggravating to fans and the media. It’s also aggravating to Major League Baseball, managers, and coaches. At some time this offseason this will become a front-burner issue, if it isn’t already.

For someone who hates changes in baseball, even I would admit there has to be a limit on catcher/pitcher conferences, doesn’t there?

Tigers manager Brad Ausmus, who caught 1,938 games in the big leagues, agrees there are too many conferences, but he said the reason for many of them is opposing teams stealing signs and thus the pitcher and catcher needing to change location indicators and signals.

“It used to be taboo, but now it’s tolerated as part of the game,” Ausmus said. “But I do believe that some pitchers and catchers are guilty of too many. Maybe a touch too many overall.”

Red Sox manager John Farrell was asked if he has noticed more catcher mound visits or whether it was simply a hot topic because of the overall slow pace of play.

“A combination,” Farrell said. “I’ll be honest, the constant disguising of signals is the root of it. Better be safe than sorry. When you see it is in the critical moments with a man on second base. Just count how many trips to the mound there are with a man at second as opposed to when there isn’t a man on second. That’s probably all you need to know.”

Farrell sees a greater concentration in the area of stealing signs.

“You’re always looking for an edge, and there’s nothing wrong about that,” he said. “How do you combat it and how do you change on the fly as best as you can is the important thing.”

Farrell, like Ausmus, would like to see fewer mound visits.

“I would to like to see a reduction because at times it can disrupt the rhythm of the game. We’d like the ability to achieve what you want without making a trip to the mound,” said Farrell, who pointed out other reasons for visits.

“It may be a quick review of a tag play on a hitter in a key spot. The pitcher and catcher may be getting on the same page with a certain pitch. If there’s a shake-off, maybe the pitcher doesn’t feel convicted as to what the catcher is calling. If it’s a key spot with men in scoring position, let’s get it right.”

Farrell does believe MLB will review putting a limit on mound visits.

Meanwhile, Red Sox special assistant Jason Varitek sees things a little differently.

“My understanding was that nobody was worse than me when it came to mound visits,” said Varitek, who caught 1,488 games in the big leagues. “I know we’re doing things to speed up the game, but we’re also in need of protecting what goes on defensively with signs and stuff. I have about this much [about an inch width between his fingers] problem with it. None.”

Asked if he agreed that teams stealing signs is the biggest reason for catchers visiting the mound, Varitek said, “Could be. But that existed before. We couldn’t go into the majority of the venues and not protect ourselves. You have to get on the same page in a crucial situation. If you’re having a hard time stopping the relaying of signs, you’ve got to go out there. You’ve got to protect it somehow.

“You should make the trip if the situation calls for it.”

Varitek said it also depends on the pitcher and how you’re changing the signs.

“With aerospace engineers like [Craig] Breslow you could do something really complicated or with language barriers like [Daisuke] Matsuzaka from Japan you’d be less complicated,” Varitek said.

“If there’s three [mound visits] every inning that’s a different story, but if it’s a tie game in the 11th and you have to take three trips, then you do whatever it takes. You can’t not take a trip to consider the speed of the game. But it’s just like a pitcher getting the ball and getting right back on the mound and making the pitch. It helps the pace of the game. The rhythm is better. When there are too many mound visits the umpires step in and they say, ‘Let’s go, get back there, let’s go.’ ”

Former Red Sox president Larry Lucchino seemed to sum it up best when he told the Attleboro Sun Chronicle this past week, “If a catcher wants to talk to the pitcher he can do it on his own time.”

Amen.

TRADE PARTNERS?

Phillies make sense for Stanton

None of us know where the Marlins sale will lead and what sidebars will come as a result, but this has become one of the most talked-about subjects among baseball people. One reason there’s so much intrigue is the elephant in the room — Giancarlo Stanton and his enormous contract.

There’s been plenty of speculation as to how it will end up, but there’s been significant chatter in a few organizations, most notably the Phillies, which tends to indicate the Marlins could have a route to dealing Stanton.

The Phillies make sense. General manager Matt Klentak has tried to give his young players room to develop. Some are developing on time, while others have struggled. At some point the fan base will get impatient because it’s a big market where there were glory days not long ago.

The Phillies won one championship in Ruben Amaro Jr.’s tenure as assistant GM, but at the time they were an entertaining team with stars such as Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Jayson Werth, and Shane Victorino to keep fans interested.

The Phillies have two things going in their favor now: money and prospects. So there’s a way to get better fast. They could adopt the Red Sox’ model of having a core of good young players while surrounding them with free agents, or veterans via trade.

There’s no doubt that if the Phillies don’t land Stanton, they would be major players for the 2018 free agent class that includes Bryce Harper and Manny Machado.

One scenario I heard in Philadelphia this past week was that the Phillies would not only seek Stanton but would also need Christian Yelich in any deal with Miami. The reason is that the Phillies don’t have the best outfield prospects.

Stanton has a full no-trade clause and being dealt to the Phillies might not be an attractive choice. He’s a West Coast native, therefore the Angels, Dodgers, Giants, Athletics, Mariners, Diamondbacks, and Rockies might have more appeal. The Angels, after the big contracts they gave to Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton, may not be in the market to take on another. The Dodgers, with their unlimited resources, could.

Apropos of nothing

1. Pirates righthander Jameson Taillon wrote this back on May 8, when he had surgery for testicular cancer: “When I was a kid, I spent countless numbers of hours dreaming of being a major league pitcher. Always determined (borderline obsessed) with working hard to make it, I never doubted myself. However, as a naive little guy, I never realized each person has a different path and journey along their way to accomplishing their goals. Tommy John surgery, sports hernia surgery, a 105-m.p.h. line drive off my hard head, and this most recent discovery are just a few of the stops along the way . . . My journey hasn’t been the smoothest. But it is my journey, and I wouldn’t change it for anything. Thank you to my family.” Taillon made his first start since that surgery on Tuesday, throwing five shutout innings in a 7-2 win.

2. The Twins remain one of the game’s biggest surprises, still atop the American League Central, but they’d be in even better shape if they could play well at home. The Twins have lost 20 of 34 games at Target Field, posting the worst home record in baseball. One of the big questions around baseball is will the Twins be buyers before the trade deadline or will they stay the course with their master plan? This, according to one major league executive, “will be a big issue. Because if you’re playing well as a team, you have to know as a player that management is also trying to win. If you don’t know that, it can really be demoralizing.”

3. My goodness, the Orioles’ starting rotation has been awful. On their recently concluded road trip, Baltimore’s starters were 1-7 with a 12.54 ERA (45 earned runs in 32 innings).

4. A major league coach said to me recently, “It’s too bad the Rays wouldn’t trade Evan Longoria to the Red Sox. He’d be perfect for them.” Have to agree, especially if you believe that Sox third base prospect Rafael Devers will wind up playing a different position.

5. Pete Rose probably won’t see any chance for baseball reinstatement in his lifetime. The latest setback is the Hall of Fame itself deciding not to overturn the 1991 resolution banning Rose from baseball. “After extensive discussion, a vote was taken in which the Board ratified the resolution that was passed on Feb., 4, 1991, known today as Rule 3(E) in the BBWAA’s election rules. As such, anyone deemed permanently ineligible by Major League Baseball, including Pete Rose, may not be considered for election to the Baseball Hall of Fame.”

6. Facts and figures from the amateur draft: Pitcher was the position most frequently chosen, players, with 660 being selected (472 righthanders, 188 lefthanders). The rest of the pool was comprised of 246 infielders (100 shortstops, 61 third basemen, 42 second basemen, 37 first basemen, and 6 utility), 205 outfielders, and 99 catchers. Four schools: Chipola College, Stanford, Michigan, and Texas, had 11 players each selected, tied for the most. Players from 46 states were taken, but not Idaho, Maine, Vermont, and North Dakota.

7. Great to see that the Red Sox drafted lefthander Rio Gomez in the 36th round. He’s the son of classy ESPN reporter Pedro Gomez.

Updates on nine

1. Andrew Miller, LHP, Indians — It’s almost shocking now when you see Miller struggle. He lost the first two games of the series against the Dodgers this past week, allowing five earned runs and two homers in 2 innings, after giving up one earned run and no homers in his previous 27 appearances. One AL scout who was there said, “Just leaving balls over the plate. Not enough followthrough on his slider.” Suppose it happens to the best once in a while.

2. James Shields, RHP, White Sox — Often forgotten on a list of possible pitcher acquisitions simply because he hasn’t been that good in his White Sox tenure: 5-12 with a 6.11 ERA in parts of two seasons. Shields, 35, has been on the disabled list with a lat strain but is scheduled to make his return on Sunday. Scouts will be watching. If Shields can show over a few starts that he’s healthy and pitching better, he could be a low-cost (in terms of players) option for a team. While the Padres are paying $11 million of his $21 million salary over the next two years, it would appear the White Sox would have to eat a significant amount of the $10 million per year Shields is owed over the next two years from them.

3. Howie Kendrick, 2B/LF, Phillies — Kendrick is an emerging trade chip as an attractive righthanded bat. I asked Phillies folks whether Kendrick could be considered a third base option for a contender, and the answers were in the negative. But given his infield instincts one scout said, “He can get in front of it, knock it down, and make the throw. I’ll bet you could get by with him there and you’d take the chance because of his bat. But at this stage he’s better off in left field.” Kendrick did play 17 games at third base last season and made just one error. Lately he’s been seen taking ground balls at third. If he could play third, the Yankees and Red Sox would have interest.

4. Jhonny Peralta, SS/3B, free agent — Now that he’s become a free agent, the Red Sox are said to have “limited” interest in the possibility of adding him to Pawtucket. Peralta was once a top performer for Dave Dombrowski in Detroit as a hard-hitting shortstop.

5. Alex Avila, C, Tigers — Why is Avila hitting so well this year? The belief by Tigers officials is that his head is finally clear from the concussions he’s suffered the past couple of years. Avila has a 1.027 OPS.

6. Sonny Gray, RHP, Athletics — The A’s are following the Astros’ system closely. There’s mutual interest in getting something done for Gray as injuries have beset the Astros’ pitching staff and they need reinforcements both in the rotation and the bullpen if they are to continue their great start.

7. J.D. Martinez, OF, Tigers; Avisail Garcia, OF, White Sox — These are the two names linked most often to the Cardinals, who need a righthanded-hitting outfielder. Kendrick also could be in the mix. The Giants have been looking for a righthanded-hitting outfielder all season.

8. Nick Markakis, OF, Braves — Markakis has improved his value with a decent season, hitting .290 with a .370 on-base percentage. The lefthanded hitter will come with money issues. He’s owed $11 million next season and the prorated portion of $11 million for the rest of this season.

9. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Dodgers — You wonder what Gonzalez’s future will be with the Dodgers with rookie outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger setting the National League on fire (18 homers) and looking like the next big star. Gonzalez has a degenerative disk in his lower back and Bellinger’s quick ascent raises doubt about Gonzalez, who has one year remaining on the massive contract he signed with the Red Sox. He’s scheduled to earn $22.357 million in 2018.

Extra innings

From the Bill Chuck files — “The road ERA for these Cub starters is shocking: Jake Arrieta 5.20; John Lackey 5.40; and Jon Lester 5.85.” . . . Happy birthday, Tom McCarthy (56).

Going deep

The Rays began play Friday with 104 homers, second in the majors and on pace for a team-record 244 this season, the franchise’s 20th. Despite fielding a lineup that doesn’t have a history of going deep too often, the Rays have four hitters in double figures and have gotten homers from 16 players. The leaders:

Twins fall into first-place tie after 9-3 loss to Cleveland Indians

Mike Berardino

Journeyman left-hander Adam Wilk seemed an unlikely candidate to stem the recent downturn in the Twins’ rotation. It didn’t take him very long Saturday afternoon to confirm those doubts.

Jose Ramirez, en route to a two-homer day, kick-started a three-run, 37-pitch first with an opposite-field solo shot, and things devolved from there in a 9-3 runaway for the Cleveland Indians. Ramirez and rookie center fielder Bradley Zimmer each drove in four runs as the Indians tied the Twins atop the American League Central.

With the slow-moving loss in the opener of a day-night doubleheader, the Twins fell to 14-22 at home, including 0-5 against the Indians. The Twins have dropped 12 of their last 15 overall to the Indians, dating to last August.

At Target Field, they have lost 10 of their last 12 to the Indians, dating to April 2016.

Heading into Saturday’s nightcap, the Twins were in danger of ending their 37-day stay atop the division. Since the close of play on May 11, they had held at least a share of first place for more than five straight weeks.

Wilk was designated for assignment after the game and 26-year-old right-hander Alan Busenitz was purchased from Triple-A Rochester.

“It’s a tough circumstance to come up and face that lineup,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “We know he’s capable.”

Over their past seven turns in the rotation, dating to Sunday in San Francisco, the Twins have gone 2-4 with a 10.12 earned-run average. They have averaged 4.95 innings per start, allowing a whopping 60 hits, five home runs and 11 walks in 34 2/3 innings — and that includes an eight-inning gem from young right-hander Jose Berrios on Thursday afternoon.

Asked Saturday morning whether it felt as though the Twins were holding open auditions for starting rotation spots, Molitor made it clear there was no time for self-pity.

“You can ask those guys how much they feel like they’re auditioning,” he said. “I’m hoping they’re thinking they have a chance to help our team continue to win games. Whether they get a chance to pitch one, two, five, 10 (times) or stay in the rotation, they’re our organizational people we’re asking to step up and help us out. If they can take advantage and add to their own personal value, that’s great too.”

Since returning from a three-game sweep of the Orioles in Baltimore, Twins starters have managed back-to-back quality starts just once. In 22 chances since then, Twins starters had produced a total of six quality starts: two apiece by Berrios and Ervin Santana, one apiece by Kyle Gibson and Adalberto Mejia.

All but two of those have come on the road.

Wilk, a soft tosser with little margin for error, recorded just 10 outs before getting chased in the fourth. One of those was a gift, a sacrifice bunt in a scoreless second from Jason Kipnis, who whacked a double off the wall his next time up.

Zimmer, who came in hitting .188 off lefties, delivered a two-run single in the first and added an RBI double off Wilk in the third. In 13 career big-league outings, including five starts, covering 40 1/3 innings, Wilk is now 0-5 with a 7.36 ERA.

“We’ve done this a little more commonly as of late, the two-out rallies and still putting up crooked numbers,” Molitor said. “They can really hurt you. A lot of hits. Probably could have been worse, given how many men they left on base.”

Spot starter Ryan Merritt lasted just four innings, giving up run-scoring hits to Brian Dozier and Ehire Adrianza (two-run double), but the Indians’ vaunted bullpen took it from there.

Pioneer Press LOADED: 06.18.2017

Doubleheader sweep knocks Twins out of first place

Mike Berardino June 18, 2017 at 12:01 am

Alan Busenitz came in firing heat in his big-league debut, but by then Lonnie Chisenhall had already doused the Twins’ hopes of a doubleheader split.

Chisenhall’s two-homer Saturday night included a decisive three-run shot off reliever Tyler Duffey in the sixth inning as the Cleveland Indians stormed to a 6-2 win over the Twins, elbowing past them for first place in the American League Central. The teams sat through a 75-minute rain delay in the top of the fifth inning.

Busenitz, 26, worked two impressive innings, touching 97 mph along with a power curve. Acquired last August from the Los Angeles Angels in the Ricky Nolasco trade, Busenitz struck out his first batter, Jose Ramirez, and was one out away from a scoreless debut when he hung a two-strike slider that Francisco Lindor deposited into the right-field seats.

“He’s got velocity and he’s got a breaking ball,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “He’s had good numbers down there (at Triple-A Rochester). He’s been consistent. He’s going to get a shot here at least in the short term.”

Busenitz had a 2.15 earned run average through 19 outings with the Red Wings. Over his past 10 outings he had a 1.59 ERA with just two walks in 17 innings.

Joe Mauer had put the Twins ahead in the third with a two-out RBI double, but Austin Jackson and Chisenhall quickly answered with homers off starter Adalberto Mejia (1-3) in the fourth.

Brian Dozier added his 12th homer to start the sixth but the Twins still fell to 14-23 at home, including 0-6 against the Indians. The Twins have dropped 13 of their last 16 overall to the reigning American League champions, dating to last August

At Target Field, they have lost 11 of their last 13 to the Indians, dating to April 2016.

Miguel Sano has gone 2 for 11 (both singles) with four strikeouts and a walk in the series so far. He has batted with a total of four runners on base so far and is still looking for his first run batted in.

Pioneer Press LOADED: 06.18.2017

Twins swept in doubleheader, fall from division lead

Cleveland won twice and now is 6-0 at Target Field.

Phil Miller ne

The Twins’ strategy-by-necessity of starting three consecutive rookie pitchers against the defending American League champions is turning out about as well as could have been reasonably expected. Meaning, not well at all.

Adam Wilk, making his fifth career major league start, fared even worse than Nik Turley one night earlier, surrendering six runs, eight hits and three walks while recording only 10 outs as the Twins dropped a 9-3 decision to the Cleveland Indians in the first game of a split doubleheader Saturday.

Pitching the nightcap for the Twins: Adalberto Mejia, making his ninth career start. That game was delayed 75 minutes by rain in the fifth inning, and Cleveland — behind four home runs — eventually won 6-2 to take over the AL Central lead and improve to 6-0 at Target Field this year.

Now 14-23 at home, the Twins fell out of first place for the first time since May 9. They will try to avoid a four-game sweep Sunday with Kyle Gibson on the mound against Trevor Bauer.

“We kind of anticipated having some fun this series, and competing, and it hasn’t really worked out,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said between games. “Our pitching hasn’t really given us much of a chance.”

Wilk, called up from Class AAA Rochester before the game and designated for assignment immediately after it, was a best-of-bad-options choice for the Twins, considering he had given up six runs in 12 innings for the Red Wings. But the Twins ultimately decided that his big-league experience, limited as it was, made him a better risk than some younger options.

“We don’t have a lot of experienced options, at least big-time experience, but he’s got a little bit,” Molitor said. “Cleveland’s hot right now. A lot of their guys are swinging well from the righthand side, I get that. But of all the people we could consider, his name kept coming up.”

The Indians wasted no time revealing the flaw in that logic. After two quick outs, Jose Ramirez, the third batter of the game, smashed a long homer to right field, and Wilk immediately began pitching more tentatively, walking two of the next three hitters, then giving up a two-run single to Bradley Zimmer.

“We’ve done this more common as of late — [giving up] two-out rallies and still putting up crooked numbers,” Molitor said. “They can really hurt you.”

They all but ended this game early. Wilk threw 37 pitches in the first inning, passed 60 in the second, and wound up throwing 92 in his 3 -inning stint. His day ended with he gave up a single and two doubles in the space of four batters to open the fourth inning, the last a Ramirez double that drove him two more runs.

Alex Wimmers, called up for a day to serve as the Twins’ 26th man, relieved Wilk, and limited Cleveland to just one run, on Ramirez’s second homer of the game. But he recorded only five outs while running his pitch count to 37, forcing Molitor to sacrifice more of the bullpen than he had hoped. “We had to burn through a few guys,” he said, including Buddy Boshers for 36 pitches and Matt Belisle for 27.

In Game 2, the Twins got 4 innings from Mejia when the game went into a rain delay. He escaped a bases-loaded jam in the first inning but — handed a 1-0 lead on Joe Mauer’s two-out RBI double in the third — Mejia then gave up home runs to Austin Jackson and Lonnie Chisenhall in the fourth as Cleveland went ahead 2-1.

Tyler Duffey finished off the fifth inning for Mejia after the delay, but in the sixth the Twins righthander gave up a walk, a bunt single and Chisenhall’s second homer of the game. Francisco Lindor added a home run off Alan Busenitz in the righthander’s major league debut, and the Twins only managed four hits in all against five Cleveland pitchers.

Star Tribune LOADED: 06.18.2017