The Cleveland Indians dropped two of three to the Minnesota Twins over the weekend and we already started the coverage talking about concerns.
Let’s shift to a more upbeat focus.
The Indians did win Saturday’s game and Sunday’s game went into extra-innings.
The new rules with a runner starting on second base makes extras a much different animal than in the past.
One bad pitch for either team and the game could be over fast.
The real concern came Friday in the 10-0 loss, but once again we have talked about the negatives.
Here are three positives from the series that still saw the Indians keep pace with the Chicago White Sox for the American League Central division lead.
CESAR HERNANDEZ SENDS @INDIANS FANS HOME HAPPY!!!!! 🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌#OURCLE pic.twitter.com/k4t2OFoqU8
— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) May 22, 2021
3. The Walk-Off
We start with the best moment of the series.
Cesar Hernandez came to the plate in the bottom of the 10th inning Saturday and even though he was leading off, a runner was already standing on second.
He proceeded to blast a home run and call game.
This was a much-needed hit on a day when the offense could only score three runs in regulation after being shutout Friday.
It was also a nice boost for Hernandez’s confidence as his production continues to be rough out of the leadoff spot in the order.
2. The Call-Up
The Indians are calling up Owen Miller.
Franmil Reyes to the IL. Roberto Pérez to the 60-day IL.
Miller was hitting .406 with a 1.067 OPS at Triple-A.
— Zack Meisel (@ZackMeisel) May 23, 2021
Indians fans have started to hear a lot about Owen Miller.
He got the call-up this weekend with the unfortunate caveat it came after Franmil Reyes was sent to the injured list.
Miller going 0-for-5 Sunday is not a big deal, even though he did have three strikeouts.
This is a player batting .406 in Triple-A this year with a 1.067 to go along with it.
He is seen as a potential power bat in the lineup and will need some more time to develop.
The exciting thing here is the Indians actually calling up a top-performing prospect to help the team in 2021.
The unfortunate part, as stated earlier, is why Miller was called up in the first place.
1. The Standings
The Indians had a rough go against the Twins.
Luckily, the Chicago White Sox had an even worse weekend as they were swept by the New York Yankees.
This has the Indians sitting just 1.5 games out of the division lead with a four-game series against the Detroit Tigers beginning Monday.
The White Sox have a much tougher opponent in the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Kansas City Royals have notably rebounded as well and are only four games behind Chicago in the standings.
Both the Tigers and Twins are technically still in the race, but the only the latter can be seen with a legitimate shot for a major turnaround.
Four games against Detroit this week could be exactly what the Indians need to wash away the negatives from the weekend.
It will also give a young player like Miller a chance to settle in while the coaching staff also figures out what to do with the newly opened spot in the starting rotation.
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