Santana Goes Yard, Indians Defeat Twins 4-3 to Avoid Three-Game Sweep

(Photo by Ron Schwane/Getty Images)

CLEVELAND, OH -- When the Indians needed him the most, Carlos Santana delivered in a big way. Santana slammed a solo home run that broke a seventh-inning tie, lifting the tribe over the Minnesota Twins 4-3.

Shane Bieber, coming off of an All-Star Game MVP Award, helped the tribe salvage a win and get within 6 1/2 games of the division leading Twins. Bieber took a three-hit shutout into the seventh inning before giving up three runs to the rallying Twins. Two replay reviews, which both resulted in a Minnesota batter being hit, played a major role in the Twins' comeback. Tribe starter Shane Bieber admitted his frustration toward the video reviews that took place in the seventh inning. "That's the way the game is," he said, "Sometimes things don't go your way. Unfortunately that's kind of what replay is for."

Jose Ramirez continues to improve each game, as he got the Indians on the board in the first inning with a run scoring double. Greg Allen and Tyler Naquin each contributed an RBI single in the fourth inning.

All-Star closer Brad Hand earned his 24th save out of 25 opportunities, after striking out the side using mainly his slider and fastball. The Cleveland Indians move to 51-40 on the season, trimming the Minnesota divisional lead to 6.5 games. The tribe will begin a short two-game series against the visiting Detroit Tigers. Adam Plutko will take the hill for the tribe, facing off against Tigers lefty Daniel Norris. First pitch is set for 7:10 pm ET at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio.


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