Cleveland Indians now just trying to remain in first place

The Cleveland Indians entered the weekend with a chance to open up a major lead in the division but are now just trying to remain in first.

Cleveland Indians fans were feeling great just two days ago after the team finished up a 7-1 trip and returned home to take on the Minnesota Twins. But things change.

After two losses in which the Indians have scored a combined two runs, both on Saturday, the Twins are now one win away from reclaiming first place in the AL Central.

It was just one week ago when the Indians finished off a four-game sweep of the Twins in Minnesota, but this season has proven to be unpredictable. After a stretch of great offense, the group has disappeared for the most part in the first two games of this current series.

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Today’s game will feature Ervin Santana on the mound for the Twins, while a struggling Josh Tomlin is on the mound for the home team. Things may get ugly.

Saturday’s game was a perfect example of a wasted opportunity, as Corey Kluber went seven innings and struck out 13 batters, allowing no earned runs. Two runs did come across in the first inning thanks to two errors that set the tone for the day.

When Kluber is on like that, there is no reason why the team should lose, especially when the opposing pitcher has an ERA over 6.00 as Kyle Gibson had entering the game.

Today’s game is in no way a must-win, but being swept would derail what seemed to be a great second half of the month. Even one win would build some confidence heading into the week, and get the division lead back up to 1.5 games.

The good news is the Indians have had some great performances on Sundays this season, and always seem to bounce back in series finales after a rough first few games. Not all these games have come against pitchers as good as Santana, so it won’t be an easy task.

Next: Indians great at putting the ball in play

We shall see.