This Week In Indians Baseball: Week 23

The Indians opened up the week with two wins in Detroit against the Tigers. Detroit took the third game of the series. The Indians then headed to Minnesota to face the Twins. After taking the first game of the series, the Tribe dropped the next two. Overall, the Indians went 3-3 in the 23^rd week of the season.

• Game 137: Indians 3, Tigers 2

W: Corey Kluber, L: Darin Downs

Asdrubal Cabrera provided timely hitting with a single in the third to score Shin-Soo Choo and a sacrifice fly in the seventh to score Lou Marson. Kluber pitched effectively, going six innings while allowing two runs on six hits and a walk with four strikeouts. Cody Allen and Esmil Rogers provided two innings of scoreless relief. Vinnie Pestano nailed down the save. (full recap here)

Kelvin Kuo-US PRESSWIRE

Game 138: Indians 3, Tigers 2

W: Justin Masterson, L: Rick Porcello

Masterson was the backbone in the Indians’ Tuesday night win. His only mistake was a two-run homer in the sixth. He allowed those two runs on four hits and a walk through six innings with four strikeouts. Scott Barnes, Joe Smith and Vinnie Pestano dealt two innings of hitless relief. Chris Perez came in for the save. Michael Brantley, Jack Hannahan and Asdrubal Cabrera had big hits for the Tribe, with each collecting an RBI. (full recap here)

• Game 139: Tigers 7, Indians 1

W: Doug Fister, L: Ubaldo Jimenez

Jimenez found himself in trouble early when Miguel Cabrera sent a ball over the fence for a two-run homer in the first. He was able to settle in nicely for much of the game. The eighth inning was the nail in the coffin for the Tribe when five runs came home for the Tigers, with Jimenez charged with two and Cody Allen with four. Jimenez completed 7.1 innings while allowing four runs total on six hits and one walk with three strikeouts. Michael Brantley brought home the Indians’ lone run in the fourth inning on a single to score Jason Kipnis. (full recap here)

• Game 140: Indians 7, Twins 6

W: David Huff, L: Tyler Robertson

It looked like the Indians had run into trouble when, after three innings, they were down by four. Russ Canzler started the comeback effort in the fourth on a two-run homer to score Michael Brantley. Shin-Soo Choo drove in a run in the fifth on a single that scored Jack Hannahan. Canzler struck again in the fifth on a single to score Jason Kipnis. The seventh inning was a big inning for the Tribe with three runs scored to give them the lead. Brantley and Casey Kotchman each brought home runs on a pair of singles. Cord Phelps walked with the bases loaded to bring home what would become the winning run. The Twins threatened with a run in the eighth and ninth innings. Jeanmar Gomez got the start, allowing four runs on three hits and three walks and three strikeouts over three innings. David Huff was spotless over 3.1 innings of relief in which he didn’t allow a base runner and had four strikeouts. Joe Smith had .2 innings of scoreless relief. Vinnie Pestano allowed one run in an inning of relief. Chris Perez allowed a run, but still got the save. (full recap here)

• Game 141: Twins 3, Indians 0

W: Cole De Vries, L: Zach McAllister

The Twins scored a pair of runs in the third on a single and a sacrifice fly and another in the fifth on a walk with the bases loaded. The Tribe was silenced at the plate with four hits as a team. Shin-Soo Choo provided two of the hits. McAllister pitched three innings, allowing two runs on two hits and three walks with one strikeout. Frank Hermann, Tony Sipp and Scott Barnes provided three innings of scoreless relief. (full recap here)

Jesse Johnson-US PRESSWIRE

Game 142: Twins 8, Indians 7

W: Brian Duensing, L: Vinnie Pestano

There was walkoff magic in Minnesota on Sunday afternoon. Justin Morneau provided a blast in the bottom of the ninth to seal the deal on a back-and-forth battle. The Indians logged three runs in the second for the early advantage. Carlos Santana led-off the inning with a home run. The Tribe added runs in the third, fifth and eighth innings. The Twins were right alongside them for the whole game. The teams headed into the bottom of the ninth with the game knotted at seven. Corey Kluber got roughed up in his start, going 3.2 innings while allowing five runs (four earned) on eight hits with four strikeouts. Chris Seddon, Tony Sipp and Joe Smith provided three innings of relief. Esmil Rogers allowed two runs in the seventh. Vinnie Pestano took the loss when he allowed the home run to Morneau after retiring two batters in the bottom of the ninth. (full recap here)