Twins defeat Mariners 6-2
MINNEAPOLIS — After going deep twice in a game for the first time in his big league career, Chris Gimenez still has more mop-up relief appearances this season than home runs.
Wait, maybe the Minnesota Twins have this whole thing backward with their backup catcher.
"Hopefully I'm one of the better hitting pitchers in the league," Gimenez said with a wide smile, after his pair of drives on Thursday spurred the Twins to a 6-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
Eduardo Escobar sparked a five-run first inning with a two-run shot, and Jose Berrios (6-1) took over from there by pitching a career-best eight innings to win his third straight start. The first-place Twins raised their home record, the worst in the major leagues, to 14-20 with the four-game series split.
Gimenez hit a three-run homer with two outs in the fateful first for Ariel Miranda (6-3), who lost for the first time in 10 starts for the Mariners and lasted only four innings with 10 hits and six runs allowed. Gimenez then hit the foul pole in left field with a solo drive in the third inning, giving the 34-year-old a total of 18 home runs in 867 plate appearances.
His conversations with Berrios throughout the afternoon turned out well, too, driving a strategy to mix in some changeups with a lively fastball that the right-hander spotted well and that devastating curveball.
Berrios struck out six and yielded two runs and five hits. After finishing six innings only once in 14 starts as a rookie last season on his way to an 8.02 ERA, Berrios has lasted that long in five of seven turns this year.
Berrios silenced a lineup that totaled 45 hits and 27 runs over the first three games of the series, handing the Mariners just their sixth loss in the last 18 games.
Interleague Indians 12, Dodgers 5
CLEVELAND — Lonnie Chisenhall usually senses when Indians manager Terry Francona is going to call on him as a pinch-hitter.
That moment came earlier than normal for Chisenhall on Thursday, and he was ready.
Chisenhall connected for a three-run, pinch-hit homer in the fifth inning and had five RBIs as Cleveland salvaged the finale of a three-game series by beating Los Angeles and stopping the Dodgers' six-game winning streak.
After the Dodgers closed to 5-4 in the fifth, Chisenhall hit a 415-foot drive on the second pitch from Ross Stripling to open a four-run lead for Josh Tomlin (4-8), who struggled after being staked to a 5-0 lead.
Chisenhall added a two-run single in the sixth, making him just the third Cleveland player since 1913 to come off the bench and record five RBIs or more.
Francona joked that he probably should have started Chisenhall, "but I'm not very smart." He and bench coach Brad Mills debated whether to have Austin Jackson bunt or bring up Chisenhall, a left-hander, to face Stripling.
Edwin Encarnacion homered off Rich Hill (3-3), reached base five times and scored four runs as Cleveland moved back over .500 with just its second win in 11 interleague games.
Rookie Cody Bellinger homered again for the Dodgers. He touched up Tomlin for a line-drive homer in the fourth, his 18th home run in 47 games. Only New York Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez hit more through 47 games, slugging 19.