The Cleveland Indians entered the bottom of the eighth inning Monday night hoping to avoid another frustrating finish.
Zach Plesac went 7.2 innings and only allowed three earned runs.
But the offense had only given him two runs of support.
Jose Ramirez decided to change that with a shot that had just enough height to get over the right field wall.
🐐 magic.#OurCLE pic.twitter.com/NIyUM1QV5M
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) April 27, 2021
That was the home run to tie the game.
Jordan Luplow took it a step further with a walk-off winner in the 10th.
The runner on second base to start the inning wasn’t even needed thanks to the power from the now everyday outfielder.
Hammy?#OurCLE | #WWindians pic.twitter.com/5VrEYfi0MS
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) April 27, 2021
That was a great result for Luplow after going hitless in his first four at-bats.
Several Players Step Up on Offense
The home runs from Ramirez and Luplow ends up being the big story of the night.
But Josh Naylor had three hits on the night as well.
The interesting note there is that Naylor got the start at first base against a right-handed pitcher.
Amed Rosario was in center and Luplow got the start in right.
That meant Jake Bauers remained on the bench as his time in Cleveland remains in question.
Also, Rosario is struggling mightily at the plate.
That could signal several moves will be made sooner than later.
But more on that in a separate piece.
Eddie Rosario and Franmil Reyes each drove in a run as hitters 2-5 accounted for all five RBIs on the night.
Zach Plesac Bounces Back
Zach Plesac was in a bit of a rut with back-to-back starts against the Chicago White Sox.
He allowed six earned runs in each start and needed a solid outcome Monday night.
The right-hander got one with 7.2 innings of three-run work.
This is a great final line from any starting pitcher in the league.
He also went that deep on only 93 pitches.
The bullpen once again was lights out in relief as Bryan Shaw and Emmanuel Clase combined for 2.1 innings of shutout baseball.
Clase remains unhittable and is the obvious go-to guy in high-leverage situations.
Also, Shaw is seeing quite the resurgence with the Indians in 2021.
Did the team sign a past version of him?
Starting a Winning Streak
The Indians improved to 10-11 on the year with the victory and now have two straight wins after an ugly start to the weekend series against the New York Yankees.
That is quite the way to bounce back after some fans may have been assuming the worst after Saturday night’s loss.
The loss dropped the Twins to 7-14 which in itself is a bit of a shock.
Maybe that team was a fraudulent contender all along.
However, it is still early and the Indians and Twins still have 18 more head-to-head matchups to go.
Aaron Civale will look to keep the win streak alive Tuesday night.
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