(Cleveland) José Ramírez and Bo Naylor hit two-run homers and Steven Kwan added a solo hit while bringing his batting average close to .400 in a 6-3 win for the Cleveland Guardians over the Toronto Blue Jays Saturday.
These three circuits were achieved at the expense of José Berrios (6-6) and helped the Guardians (48-26), leaders in the standings in the Central section of the American League, to increase their record to 22 games above the .500 mark for the first time this season.
Rookie Daniel Schneemann also hit a long ball for the Guardians, who have 86 home runs after 74 games, compared to 48 at the same stage a year ago.
“Maybe before, as a team, we were concerned about making contact and if that was our identity, we had to make contact if we were going for it,” Kwan remarked.
“Now this year we understand we have full at-bat presence to maneuver around. »
In the defeat, a fifth in a row for the Blue Jays, Isiah Kiner-Falefa hit two home runs and Davis Schneider hit one.
Ben Lively (7-3) allowed just three hits – including two home runs – in 5 2/3 innings, and he avenged a loss suffered in Toronto last weekend.
Rookie Cade Smith, Scott Barlow and Hunter Gaddis combined in relief to limit the Blue Jays to just one hit before Emmanuel Clase scored 23e rescue in 26 attempts.
Kwan had two hits in four at-bats, including a double, and raised his average to .390.
However, Kwan did not have enough at-bats to qualify as the best hitter in the major leagues due to missing several weeks with a hamstring injury.
Since returning from the injured list on May 31, Kwan has a .468 batting average (29-for-62).
In temperatures around 30 Celsius, the ball traveled very well at Progressive Field on Saturday.
In the third round, Ramirez slammed his 19e home run of the season to give the Guardians a 4-2 lead. After a single by Andrés Gimenez, Ramirez curled a Berrios throw over the right field fence.
Kwan, whose 14-game hitting streak was snapped Friday, led off the fifth inning with his sixth homer of the season. As a result, he equaled his personal best, achieved in 2022 when he was a rookie.
Schneemann’s long ball, his second this season, made it 6-2 in the sixth inning.
Bo Naylor hit his first home run since May 4, in the second inning.
John Schneider, Blue Jays manager, boiled down Berrios’ outing – five runs, six hits in five innings – to a few pitches that missed the target.
“A lot of balls in the middle (of the plate), which is very unusual for José,” Schneider said.