The Cleveland Guardians lost 1-0 to the Minnesota Twins, failing to sweep their division rival but ending the road trip with a 7-2 record across three different time zones. Beforehand, Cleveland swept the Colorado Rockies and then won two of three games against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Devin Smeltzer earned the win, allowing three hits and striking out three batters in six scoreless innings. Zach Plesac took the loss, throwing six innings with strikeouts, but allowed the sole run in the third inning when Nick Gordon homered. The Twins had two other players collect hits - Carlos Correa went three-for-four, and Giovani Urshela had a double.
Former Cleveland pitcher Joe Smith escaped a seventh-inning jam after the Guardians loaded the bases with no outs. He forced two groundballs resulting in force outs at home plate, then forced a flyout to hold the Guardians scoreless. Five Guardians players had a base hit, including Luke Maile, Franmil Reyes, and Andres Giminez who each hit a double.
Despite the loss, the Guardians have won seven consecutive series, and are 17-5 over that span. Cleveland is tied with Minnesota atop the Central Division but is percentage points ahead. The Guardians will begin an 11-game homestand tomorrow at 7:10 against the Boston Red Sox (39-31), the first of a three-game series. After that, they welcome the Minnesota Twins for five games and the New York Yankees for three games.