Franmil Reyes leads Cleveland Indians to 20th win over Tigers, more Tribe news
By Chad Porto
The Cleveland Indians swept the Detroit Tigers behind Franmil Reyes’ big day.
Franmil Reyes had a huge day and that’s with him getting hit by a pitch. The ball hit the big man’s wrist but luckily it’s only a contusion and nothing was broken. What was broken was the backs of the Detroit Tigers who dropped their 20th game in a row to the Cleveland Indians.
Part of the reason the team was able to win 8-5 and finish the sweep of the series had to do with Reyes’ huge day where he hit two home runs. He had three total hits on the day and now his batting average is at .316 for the season. He also has five home runs and 15 RBI’s for the year as well, having come on strong since this very writer called for him to ride some pine for a few days.
Francisco Lindor also had a big day, going 3-5 with three RBI’s and a home run. His average, after dipping hard, is back up to .233, a steady improvement from where Lindor started the year at.
The Indians improve to 13-9 and are only one game out of the AL Central heading into a weekday series with the Pittsburgh Pirates that starts on Tuesday. That game will potentially see the much-needed return of Gold Glove winner Roberto Perez, who’s been out of the lineup for most of the year following a shoulder injury on July 27. Backup catchers Sandy Leon and Beau Taylor have done an admirable job defensively and with the pitching staff but neither man has found a rhythm at the plate. Each catcher seems overpowered whenever they step into the batter’s box.
Leon is hitting .119, while Taylor has yet to register a hit this season. Taylor, even worse yet, has only five career hits in the majors across 43 at-bats. He has a career .109 batting average. He’s also registered a career-high in strikeouts so far in 2020 with seven already. To say the team needs Perez back is an understatement. The team also needs some depth there, but that’s a different point for a different column.
The Indians are currently the second wildcard team, and are just a half a game back from the Tampa Bay Rays for the first wildcard team.
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