The Cleveland Guardians came back from a 3-1 deficit to beat the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 5-3 Wednesday afternoon, completing a home-sweep and extending their winning streak to six games.
The Guardians once again picked up a victory the Cleveland way, punching in bunches and beating their opponent with timely hitting. An Austin Hedges double play in the bottom of the fifth inning would plate a run, cutting the deficit to one run.
Two innings later, Tyler Freeman would tie the game with an RBI double. Then in the bottom of the eighth, José Ramírez delivered the knockout blow, squaring up and hitting a two-run home run, scoring Andrés Giménez.
Guardians relief pitcher James Karinchak — just days after Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli called for umpires to check his hair for 'sticky stuff' — would slam the door shut on the Angels in the top of the ninth, picking up his third save as his club won 5-3 and improved to 76-65 on the season.
The Guardians extended their winning streak to six games, and have now won eight of their last nine.
The Chicago White Sox would fall to the Colorado Rockies 3-0 later in the afternoon, giving the Guardians a four-game lead over the White Sox in the American League Central, with just three weeks remaining in the regular season.
The Guardians and White Sox will meet Thursday for a makeup game in Cleveland that was originally scheduled to be played August 21, but was rained out.
The Guardians will then open a five-game home series with the Twins Friday, before traveling to Chicago for their last series with the White Sox.
The Guardians are in control of their own fate, and have a chance to bury their competitors in the AL Central over the next week.
With their loss Wednesday, the Angels clinched their seventh-straight losing season, the longest active streak in Major League Baseball.
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