Guardians React After Improbable Walk-Off Win Over Mariners

Jones led off the inning with a double, which was his second big hit of the night. After Brayan Rocchio dropped a lightly hit ball into left field, Jones rounded third, stuttered for a second, then broke for home, scoring the winning run. 

“I was honestly just trying to find [Rouglas Odor]. I didn’t know where he was. He was all the way down by the catcher,” admitted Jones. “I turned and looked, found him toward home, and he was sending me.”

Just a few pitches later, Kwan delivered the game-winning sacrifice fly, securing a win for the Guardians.

Even with Cleveland down four runs before they stepped up the play, Kwan emphasized that for the Guardians,“It’s never give up… We chipped away. That’s what we do. That’s Guards Ball.”

Part of what made Rocchio’s game-tying hit so impressive was that his intention was never to end up at base. Throughout his entire at-bat, Rocchio was trying to put down a bunt, but the pitches he saw didn’t allow him to do so. Once he ended up with two strikes, it was time for Rocchio to swing away.

Stephen Vogt especially appreciated the fight and mental toughness he saw from Rocchio late in the game. 

“A lot of people can take themselves out of that at bat and just go flail at the next pitch and feel sorry for themselves, feel bad, didn't get it done, but you know, he's stuck his nose in there,” said Cleveland’s skipper. 

It’s only one win, but with where Cleveland currently stands in the playoff race, every victory from now until the end of the year will be important, especially an emotional one like Friday night was.

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