CLEVELAND — Casey Kotchman’s single in the bottom of the 10th inning gave the Indians a 4-3 win over the Twins at Progressive Field Thursday.
Sin-Soo Choo opened the inning with a double off of reliever Anthony Swarzak, and then went to third on a ground out. Minnesota walked the bases loaded to try to get a force out, but Kotchman’s single foiled that plan.
With the loss, the Twins fell back into a tie with Cleveland for fourth-place in the American League Central Division.
Trevor Plouffe homered in the sixth inning, but it was an odd affair. Cleveland center fielder Michael Brantley had no idea where it went, and Plouffe stopped running. When the confusion cleared, Plouffe crossed the plate for his 23rd home run of the year, giving the Twins a 3-2 lead at the time.
The Twins now head to Detroit for a three-game series. Heading into Thursday’s game against Oakland, the Tigers were two games behind the first-place Chicago White Sox in the American League Central Division. The Twins can have a serious impact on Detroit’s postseason plans, as they face the Tigers six times before the end of the season.
The Twins can also play the spoiler role against the New York Yankees next week at Target Field. The Yankees are battling Baltimore for the A.L. East crown. While New York will likely end up with a playoff spot, they’d rather go in as division champs rather than one of two Wild Card entries.
