The Cleveland Indians were led by Carlos Santana and Zach Plesac and were able to take the first game of the series against the New York Yankees.
Just like his uncle, Zach Plesac earned his first Major League win against the New York Yankees. Plesac went seven innings allowing only two runs on six hits while striking out five in his third start for the Indians. Plesac gave up two runs early in the game but was able to shut things down after the third inning. New York scored on a Clint Frazier RBI double in the second and an Aaron Hicks solo home run in the third.
Luckily the Cleveland offense was able to rally and come away with a win. A Jason Kipnis single drove in Oscar Mercado for the Indians first run. Tyler Naquin would homer in the fifth inning to tie the game at two. The big blow came off the bat of Carlos Santana in the sixth. After Oscar Mercado reached on a single, Santana blasted a two-run shot to give the Tribe a 4-2 lead. The Indians fifth and final run of the game came via a Jason Kipnis sacrifice fly in the eighth. Francisco Lindor would come home to give Cleveland a three run lead and a more than comfortable lead for closer Brad Hand.
Brad Hand came on in the ninth and shut things down. In fact Hand struck out the side on 12 pitches. This was Hand’s 19th save of the season. Cleveland taking the first game of the series is crucial. With Adam Plutko starting Game 2 a win may not be in the cards. If the Indians are going to win the series taking the first game was the first step. Now they have two chances to win just one more game.
