Dodgers homer off Miller again
CLEVELAND — Andrew Miller hadn’t given up a home run this season prior to this week. He had been as close to unhittable as any pitcher in baseball.
In a play that stunned Miller and most of the crowd at Progressive Field, the Los Angels Dodgers hit the goahead home run off of Miller for the second straight game, as the Indians fell 6-4 on Wednesday night.
With the score tied 2-2 in the eighth, Enrique Hernandez drove a solo home run to right field off Miller that led to a four-run eighth. On Tuesday night, Miller (3-2) also gave up a go-ahead home run, also in the eighth inning, that one belonging to Cody Bellinger.
The Dodgers added on following the Hernandez's shot.
Yasmani Grandal grounded into what appeared to be an inning-ending double play, but Erik Gonzalez, who started at second base after Jason Kipnis was scratched due to neck stiffness, wasn’t on the base during the turn, allowing a run to score. With Zach McAllister on the mound, Chris Taylor later blooped a single into center field to score two more runs and make it 6-2.
In the bottom of the eighth, Michael Brantley doubled in a run and Edwin Encarnacion drove him in with a check-swing single to chip away at the Dodgers’ lead, but that was all the Indians could muster.
Joc Pederson had an RBI single and Taylor stole home to give the Dodgers a 2-0 lead in the second inning.
The Indians cut the lead in half in the sixth and evened the score in the seventh. Facing Grant Dayton with runners on the corners, Brantley hit a fly ball to center field that right fielder Yaisel Puig, owner one of the game’s best arms, ran over to catch. Bradley Zimmer, in the leadoff spot in Kipnis’ absence, tested his arm and won the battle to make it 2-1. An inning later, Jose Ramirez blasted a solo home run to right field.
Indians ace Corey Kluber turned in another strong outing since his return to the disabled list and made some history while doing it. Kluber allowed two runs on four hits and a walk and struck out 10 in seven innings.
With a strikeout of Puig in the fifth, Kluber became the 11th Indians pitcher to reach 1,000 strikeouts in his career. He also became the fastest to reach that mark in franchise history, besting Bob Feller by 19 games (148-167).
Indians manager Terry Francona returned to the dugout after being hospitalized for a few hours Tuesday night. He underwent a battery of tests and was released early Wednesday.
Puig was in the lineup after appealing his onegame suspension by Major League Baseball for making an obscene gesture to Indians fans on Tuesday night.
Puig, also fined for the incident, was booed in each at-bat and his two strikeouts brought some of the biggest cheers of the night.