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An odd night down at Progressive Field ended the best possible way: a walk-off win for the Cleveland Guardians.
The winning swing came from Kyle Manzardo in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Guardians a 2-1 win over their division rival Minnesota Twins.
Mama, there goes that Man.#GuardsBall | #GuardiWins pic.twitter.com/8GvvxV1fPP
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) April 30, 2025
Walk-off wins are always fun and exciting, but how the Guardians got to this point made it that much more enjoyable for the team, coaches, and fans who stuck around and stayed up late to watch the game.
Tuesday night's matchup was delayed over three hours, waiting for a system of storms to roll through the Cleveland area.
The rain never came down as expected, but eventually, the game started at 9:20 pm and ended just before midnight.
Now, let's break down how the Guardians managed to secure a victory on an irregular night of baseball.
Each of Cleveland's runs came off of solo home runs.
The first long ball of the game came from Bo Naylor in the third inning. Cleveland's catcher worked a nine-pitch at-bat which ended in the ball sailing over the right field wall.
This plate appearance was what Bo can be at his best: taking pitches, following off balls around the zone, and crushing one that was right in his wheelhouse.
Hopefully, this is a sign of what's to come for Cleveland's promising catcher.
Yes, the offense came through in some timely innings, but the Guardians wouldn't have won this game without Tanner Bibee's incredible start.
The Guardians needed Bibee to pitch like an ace tonight, and he did just that. The righty threw a team season-high 7.0 innings, gave up five hits, allowed one earned run, struck out five batters, and issued no walks.
Bibee not only iced Minnesota's lineup, but he also gave the bullpen a much-needed day off after the reliever core has been heavily taxed over the last few weeks.
Cleveland is now tied with the Twins at one game apiece in this four-game set.
The next matchup will be on Wednesday evening, with the first pitch (hopefully) at 6:10 pm.
Read More Cleveland Guardians Coverage
More must-reads:
- Mets fill need with trade for lefty Gregory Soto
- Trade rejection speaks volumes about Red Sox's Jarren Duran intentions
- The 'Multiple 100-RBI MLB seasons' quiz
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