The Minnesota Twins got strong pitching and timely hitting to defeat the Cleveland Indians by a score of 3-1 on Wednesday afternoon. Anthony Swarzak (2-0, 4.10 ERA) pitched five innings for the win, allowing one earned run on two hits, one walk, and three strikeouts. Twins' right fielder Oswaldo Arcia hit his sixth home run of the season (video) in the bottom of the sixth inning to give the Twins a two-run lead that they never relinquished.
The Indians scored their lone run in the top of the third when Jose Ramirez hit his first double of the season to score David Murphy. Minnesota tied it in the bottom half on a Sam Fuld RBI single that plated Danny Santana. The Twins then took the lead for good in the fifth, when Brian Dozier drove home Santana with a double for his 47th RBI of the season.
Five Twins' relievers combined for four scoreless innings, and Glen Perkins notched his 24th save with a one-hit ninth. He struck out Nick Swisher and Yan Gomes in succession to end the game. Perkins has now struck out 54 hitters in 42.1 innings this season.
Cleveland's Trevor Bauer was the tough-luck loser (4-5, 3.93). He pitched a quality start, allowing three earned runs in six innings. He allowed six hits, walked two, and struck out seven.
With the loss, Cleveland drops to 6.5 games behind the Detroit Tigers in the American League Central, pending the result of the Tigers' game on Wednesday evening.