Indians fans are not alone in their torment when it comes to late drama with the game on the line. In the ninth inning on Monday night, manager Terry Francona watched from the dugout as closer Chris Perez loaded the bases with two outs against the Royals.
Francona was blunt about what he thought of the situation.
“I actually had a stomach ache,” Francona said.
Relief came when Perez induced a game-ending flyout to center field off the bat of Alex Gordon, sealing a 4-3 Indians win and allowing the Progressive Field crowd to exhale. Welcome to meaningful September baseball, Cleveland. The stakes are high and the heros are many — at least that has been the case this year for this surprising Tribe squad.
Ubaldo Jimenez, who led baseball with 17 losses a year ago, turned in another overpowering outing, emerging as the kind of rotation leader the Indians envisioned over the past two turbulent years. Catcher Yan Gomes, an unknown acquired in a quiet trade with Toronto over the offseason, threw out two baserunners, blocked a run at the plate and crushed one of the Tribe’s three home runs.
And then there was rookie Jose Ramirez, who was summoned from Double-A Akron as part of September callups, using his legs to create an improbable run in the third inning.
“We’re going to need it,” said Francona, referring to the contributions from a variety of sources. “We’re not the team that’s going to bash you to death, but you show up and try to be one run better. Tonight, I feel like maybe we were like a tenth of a run better, but it was good enough.”
With the win, the Indians now sit 1 1/2 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays for the American League’s second Wild Card spot.
“That’s everything a player wishes for,” Jimenez said. “That’s what you play for, to be in the postseason or at least be playing to get there. It’s really fun. Every game means something. It’s like you come to the stadium and you know that everything counts. You have to give it all.”
That is especially true for this series against Kansas City, which sits 2 1/2 games behind Cleveland in both the AL Central and Wild Card standings. The Indians, Royals, Orioles and Yankees represent the four teams currently trying to chase down the Rangers and Rays for the Wild Card spots. For the Tribe, Kansas City represents the only team with a winning record left on its schedule.
This is a chance for the Indians (77-66) to widen the gap for the Royals.
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